


Just Bodies that Collide

by the_me09



Category: Captain America: CIvil War (2016), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alpha Tony Stark, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Canon Compliant, Knotting, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Omega Quentin Beck, One Shot, Rimming, Shameless Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-28
Updated: 2020-06-28
Packaged: 2021-03-04 05:22:36
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 22,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24964438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_me09/pseuds/the_me09
Summary: Tony was expecting more bustle in lab four.Their project is getting its debut in a week and Beck had given him hell about the deadline being so soon. Beck doesn’t seem like the kind of leader to let everyone go home by seven in the evening with that kind of pressure on.Yet, when Tony walks in, the only sound is Beck swearing and then typing furiously.
Relationships: Quentin Beck/Tony Stark
Comments: 12
Kudos: 54





	Just Bodies that Collide

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to  unsettled  for the beta! This would have been less tense and less hot without her input. 
> 
> Title from the song 'Divide' by Bastille.

Tony was expecting more bustle in lab four.

Their project is getting its debut in a week and Beck had given him hell about the deadline being so soon. Beck doesn’t seem like the kind of leader to let everyone go home by seven in the evening with that kind of pressure on.

Yet, when Tony walks in, the only sound is Beck swearing and then typing furiously.

“I could have sworn you had a whole team to finish this project,” Tony says, looking around the lab exaggeratedly.

“I think better alone.” He picks up the retro-framing glasses. Tony has to come up with a better name because illusion tech just isn’t snappy enough.

“I need recordings of the memory we’re using,” Beck says. “There’s no way you can go on stage with a live feed to your brain.” He gestures for Tony to step into their designated projecting space. Tony doesn’t move immediately, waiting for Beck to hand him the glasses, but Beck just snaps his fingers. “We have a deadline, Stark.”

Tony shakes his head and moves to the taped off area. They’ve erected a grey photographer’s background that makes Tony feel like he’s getting a school picture taken. He taps his foot while Beck fiddles with the glasses. Beck’s shoulders are tense; something seems different about him, but Tony can’t quite put his finger on it.

“Stop tapping your foot at me,” Beck snaps, glaring at Tony.

“Oh, I’m sorry, would you rather I snap my fingers at you?” Tony says, sarcasm heavy. He snaps his fingers at Beck in a mockery of him. “We have a deadline, Beck.” He doesn’t really care that Beck is so pushy; he’s used to this attitude, and so far Beck has more bark than bite. It’s just that something is off and having an omega snap at him is making the hair at the back of his neck stand up.

Beck rolls his eyes. “Typical alpha,” he mutters. Beck steps into Tony’s space; Tony startles at the movement, grabbing Beck’s wrist on instinct. He earns an unimpressed look. “I have to make sure the glasses are sitting in the correct spot.”

Tony exhales and gives a short nod. His senses are on high alert, but he can’t figure out why. Beck doesn’t exactly seem like a threat when Tony can summon the armor at any moment. Sure, Beck’s gotten a little more buff, a little more broad, how old is he now? Late-twenties, early-thirties? Big difference from the skinny kid they hired straight out of college. That’s still no reason for Tony to be so jumpy.

Beck places the glasses on Tony, his fingers light, gentle, following the frames over Tony’s ear, pressing the ends against the side of Tony’s head. Beck is looking past him like a dentist, professionally cool. It gives Tony the perfect opportunity to study Beck’s face. He looks tired, tense. After this presentation Beck should really take a vacation.

He turns away and Tony gets a whiff of… cologne? Or is that Beck’s natural scent and he’s just never noticed before? It’s a nice smell.

“Alright, recording,” Beck says, tapping a few keys on his laptop. “Whenever you’re ready.” 

Tony hates this part. It’s uncomfortable to watch this play out, over and over, with no way to stop it, no way to say ‘hey, don’t go’, to tell himself ‘stop being a dick.’ The projections are so life-like, so real. The first time they’d done this, Tony had to excuse himself to have a panic attack in the bathroom.

He summons the memory, watches his younger self - was he ever really that small? - mumble quips that he only half wants his parents to hear. When it’s over he takes the glasses off, rubbing his temples.

“Why did you take the glasses off?” Beck snarls at him. “We need to record the way you want to change it too, so I can merge the two renderings and make it seamless.”

“Alright, alright, jeez. Give a guy a break.” Tony frowns. Is Beck always this aggressive? No wonder he didn’t want his team around. He puts the glasses back on, adjusting them, watching Beck cautiously. Maybe the stress is too much. Beck turns to his computer, tugging at the neck of his shirt. He undoes the top button like he’s too warm.

The memory starts, but halfway through Tony gets distracted by a scent in the air. What is that? The illusion dissolves without his focus. 

“This is exactly why we’re recording these and pre-rendering them. Goddammit, Stark!” Beck hits his hand on the table. 

“Gimme a second,” Tony says, holding up a hand. The scent is… tantalizing. Warm, homey, like baking bread. It’s a scent he knows, but can’t quite place. He tips his head up and sniffs. 

“We don’t have a second! This presentation is happening _next week_ and I don’t have any of it rendered!” Beck throws his arms up. “We’ll be lucky to make the deadline, even with a team, and you want a second for what? Are you going to sneeze?”

And people call Tony dramatic, jeez. 

“Just- hold on,” Tony says. He pulls the glasses off and steps forward, breathing in deep. It’s definitely bread, but what kind? It’s got a fruity, nutty sort of tang. 

“Put the glasses back on and focus,” Beck growls, like really growls, deep in his chest. It’s kind of hot.

Tony pauses, gives Beck a look. There’s no need for growling. It raises his hackles, bunches, his shoulders, it makes him want to growl back. 

He clears his throat and puts the glasses back on. “Fine,” Tony says. “I’ll deal with that after we get this recording.” 

He runs through the memory again, imagining it the way he wishes it had gone. If only he could have had that moment with his mom, with his dad. Just one thing that he didn’t have to regret. When the memory fades it’s like waking from a dream; he’s drained, aching and wistful. Fuck, he needs a drink. 

“Got it,” Beck says. “Finally.”

Tony takes off the glasses and sets them on the workstation near Beck. That warm bread scent has only gotten stronger. It’s really going to bug him if he can’t figure out what that smell is. He breathes deep, and his skin feels a little warmer. Beck glances at him.

“You’re dismissed,” Beck says, waving a hand at him.

Tony opens his mouth to give a witty comeback, but that scent wafts toward him, stronger than ever. Oh, the scent is… Beck? It definitely got wafted toward him when Beck moved. Tony steps closer and sniffs. God, could it be zucchini bread?

“What the hell are you doing?” Beck’s voice is low, dangerous. Tony licks his lips.

“Banana bread!” Tony points at Beck. “That’s what I’m smelling, banana bread.”

Beck looks unimpressed. “Banana bread?”

Tony looks seriously at Beck. He’s flushed, all the way down to that open button of his shirt. The pieces start falling together: Tony’s on-edge feeling, the aggression, that fucking amazing scent?

“You’re in heat,” Tony says in disbelief. “Jesus, Beck, that’s a hazard. Go home.”

“I’m not going home,” Beck says. He doesn’t deny that he’s in heat though.

“I can’t believe you came in today. Did you know you were going into heat?” Tony frowns, watching Beck curl forward defensively. “You have paid heat days, there’s no reason for you to be here. What if you’d gone into heat in the middle of the day?”

“I’m fine,” Beck hisses. “I have a deadline to meet.”

“So you’re putting yourself and any alpha you come across at risk? Come on, head home. You got the recording, we’re good here,” Tony says, trying to come across as gentle. An omega in heat is like a barrel of dynamite and he does not want to set Beck off. He’s unpredictable at the best of times, but in heat? Who knows what Beck might do.

But Tony gets it, the urge to just work through things. Problem is, anyone who stumbles into this lab could get mauled or worse. Hell, the more he smells that inviting scent the more his body is responding. _Down boy_ , he thinks. 

“If we’re good, you can go,” Beck says, uncaring. He pauses and turns to really look at Tony, it’s a slow, long, up and down look; the kind Tony is _very_ familiar with both giving and receiving.

Shit.

Beck licks his lips. “Or you could just fuck me.” Beck gets a glint in his eyes that Tony doesn’t trust.

Tony juts his head forward. “I’m sorry, I hallucinated briefly. I could what?” 

Beck shrugs. “I would be able to focus faster if you fucked me and got this wave over with. Then I could get back to work.” 

“I’ve taken enough sexual harassment courses to know that is against all sorts of workplace codes and bylaws, and I should not do that,” Tony says, backing up a little. 

God, but Beck’s scent is tantalizing. A sweeter smell has started to fill the air and Tony’s mouth goes dry. He’s rock hard in his slacks, body readying to pop a knot. Fuck, this is a terrible idea, terrible timing; well, good timing since he and Pepper aren’t a thing anymore, but Jesus. He should not tangle with Beck; there’s something about him that Tony doesn’t quite trust. Something dangerous and feral, something just on the edge of too much that makes Tony cautious. It could just be the omega heat though, giving Tony danger signals. 

Beck snorts. “We both know you don’t give a shit about those things, or you wouldn’t have _been_ to a bunch of sexual harassment courses. C’mon, Tony, what’s the harm?” 

Tony swallows. “I’m not doing that. You should go home.” 

“Fine, don’t, but I’m not going home,” Beck says, his expression darkening. 

He turns away from Tony and picks up the glasses. His hands are shaking. Tony glances around, looking for someone to back him up. Where’s a responsible adult when you need them? He’s trying to make good decisions. He’s trying to be better. Not descend to his most base alpha self and fuck the dangerous hot omega who works for him. Beck literally asked him though. Ugh, no, Beck is already in partial heat, he’s probably not thinking straight.

He smells so good though. Tony swallows thickly. Pepper and Rhodey would both give him that disappointed head shake if they knew he was debating this.

Tony could – should – just walk away. He could just go back to his floor and pretend he doesn’t know anything. If something happens to Beck while he’s working in a lab that anyone with clearance can access, well, Tony told him to go home. 

Beck sucks in a breath and curls his hand into a fist, dropping the glasses on the table before he crushes them. Tony can see the sweat dampening the back of his shirt, god… He could just- no, no he couldn’t just put his hand on the back of Beck’s neck and take him. 

“Seriously, go home,” Tony says again, stepping closer. 

Beck whips around, his back pressed against the edge of the desk, eyes wild. “Fuck off,” he snarls. Tony puts his hands up. “Why are you still here? You’re not helping now. I got what I needed.”

“Yeah alright,” Tony says, backing up. “It’s your ass on the line.” An aggressive omega is not what he wants to deal with right now. He didn’t imagine when he walked into the lab that he’d leave with the desperate need to jerk off.

Beck squeezes his eyes shut, panting. His chest heaving, the scent of his slick gets thicker in the air. Tony clenches his jaw. Good decisions. He’s making good decisions. 

Beck sniffs the air and whines; when he looks at Tony, his eyes are glazed. He really is handsome, big blue eyes, strong jaw. The difference in his eyes is what Tony gets stuck on. They’re usually hard, narrowed, dismissive, but right now, those eyes are all limpid desperate want. Those eyes drop to Tony’s crotch and Tony’s stomach swoops in a way he hasn’t felt in ages.

“I don’t need you anyway,” Beck grits out, face flushed. Some semblance of sanity coming back into his gaze. “You just, fucking… swan in here to redesign things to your style. I’m- I’m doing the real work. You need me,” Beck breathes out and then that moment is gone. “Why don’t you want me?” he whimpers and then clenches his hands into fists, staring at the floor.

Alright, this can’t go on. If he leaves Beck like this, someone is going to get jumped by a desperate omega, or an alpha with less control is going to do some damage. Fuck, Beck smells so goddamn tempting though. 

“Hey, it’s okay. I know it’s just the heat talking,” Tony says soothingly, keeping his voice low. “Why don’t I help you home. It’s not safe for you to stay here.” Tony moves slowly and cautiously over to Beck, reaching for his arm. 

Beck snarls at him, jerking back, toppling the desk chair. Beck bumps the desk hard and several somethings clatter to the floor. Tony catches the chair, unable to stop the growl that rips out of his throat. “Enough.” 

Tony freezes, not having meant to be so harsh. Beck shudders, presenting his throat with a soft whine. Tony’s vision seems to sharpen, his instincts on high alert. Fuck, they’re doing this. He’s not sure he could stop even if he wanted to. He leans forward and licks at Beck’s throat, accepting his offer. Beck moans and clutches at his shirt. Tony shifts closer, cups the back of Beck’s head and kisses him gently, slowly. They can start off slow, work up to his knot because he has to be sure Beck is far enough into his wave. Beck clearly has other ideas. He’s all teeth and need, biting at Tony’s mouth and making throaty insistent noises. Tony deepens the kiss, bites back, wrestles control away from Beck.

Beck becomes pliable, softer, bending under Tony’s kiss. Tony pushes the laptop and tools aside, kissing Beck hard, leaning on him until Beck is bent back over the desk. Beck brings his legs up around Tony’s waist and grinds against him. Tony groans into Beck’s mouth, it feels like he’s burning up, fire racing through him from every point they’re touching: hips, hands, mouths.

Okay, yeah, he’s doing this. He just needs to let his instincts take over, let the fire racing through him burn itself out. That’s what Beck needs anyway, he just needs a knot so he can get back to work.

Tony breaks the kiss and looks down at Beck. He’s blissed out, staring at the ceiling heavy lidded, panting, won’t stop rolling his hips. Beck meets his gaze and his eyes harden. Tony’s a little disappointed to see that dreaminess go so soon.

“Are you going to fuck me, or just stare at me all night?” Beck growls.

Apparently Beck isn’t the kind of omega that likes a soft touch. He should have known.

Tony smirks, leans back so their only point of contact is Beck’s legs wrapped around him. “What if I just wanna stare?”

Beck tightens his legs around Tony’s hips and arches his back. Tony’s breath catches in his throat; Beck is fucking gorgeous and Tony needs him naked right now. He tears at Beck’s shirt, undoing the buttons quickly. Thank god he’s not wearing a tie. Beck moans and scrabbles at Tony’s t-shirt, trying to lift it over his head while he’s still messing with Beck’s buttons. They get tangled for a moment and then both shirts are gone, but the room is ten times hotter.

“Stark, just fucking-” Beck groans and rakes his fingers down Tony’s chest. Tony hisses and pins Beck with his forearm, putting his weight into it.

Beck chokes off a whimper, but Tony can smell how turned on he is, how slick and ready for a knot. Tony lets instinct guide what he does, grabbing Beck by the back of the neck and squeezing. Beck’s mouth loosens and he goes limp, legs falling open. Tony pulls him up off the table and Beck has to catch himself on Tony so he doesn’t sink to the floor. Tony kisses him fast and harsh before turning him around and shoving him face down on the table.

Tony keeps his hand on the back of Beck’s neck, pressing down but not squeezing, and grinds against his ass. There’s a pull low in his gut, a throbbing, irresistible need that Tony hasn’t felt in ages. Beck pushes back, desperately, making soft little whining noises. Tony gets one hand on Beck’s fly, undoing it, and pulling his slacks down over that tight ass.

Fuck.

Broad shoulders narrow to a trim waist, and a truly wonderful ass. Seeing him bent over, pinned like this and desperate, makes Tony’s mouth drier than the Afghan desert. Fire consumes him, burning any sane thought from his head.

He practically rips his own pants open. Slick trickles down the inside of Beck’s thigh, his hole wet and dusky pink. Beck keens and tries to shove back, despite the hand on his neck. Tony leans along the length of Beck’s back and licks his neck, biting at the tender skin. Beck shudders and sinks down onto the desk, letting it hold their weight.

“You want my knot?” Tony growls softly.

Beck is leaving condensation on the table he’s panting so hard. He slants his eyes at Tony, far too aware.

“I’m not bent over waiting for your conversation,” Beck says, but it’s more breathy than biting.

Tony snorts. He leans back, pulling his hands away from Beck. It takes every ounce of willpower, but it’ll be worth it for Beck’s reaction. “Oh, well, if you don’t want it…”

Beck twists around with a snarl, grabbing at Tony and catching his wrist. He’s wild-eyed, trembling with need. From the look on his face it’s kind of a miracle he can string a sentence together.

“Don’t you dare,” Beck says. 

Tony raises an eyebrow. “Don’t I dare what? You know, I usually do dare. Always picked dare playing truth or dare. It keeps things interesting.” 

“Oh my god, Stark, just shut up and knot me already.” The fierce look on Beck’s face gives Tony pause. But then Beck is tugging him forward and the scent of his slick and his heat combine to make him irresistible. 

Tony shoves his pants the rest of the way down and lays himself over Beck again. His scent is clouding Tony’s mind. He doesn’t want any more sass, he wants submission. Beck’s wave won’t pass until he submits to a knot. Granted, half the fun is getting the omega down to that space, taking the sass and turning it until they’re begging. Beck leans up on his elbows with a soft noise, pressing up against Tony, pushing his ass more firmly into the cradle of Tony’s hips. 

“Oh, do you want my knot? You didn’t say,” Tony says. Fuck, Beck is so slick. Tony slides his cock along the cleft of Beck’s ass, smearing slick between his cheeks. 

Beck whines, but cuts himself off in the middle of it. “Fuck me, or fuck off,” he growls, going up on his toes so the head of Tony’s cock catches on his hole. Tony bites his lip. 

What’s the best punishment for a mouthy omega? Sure, he likes a little banter, but this was Beck’s idea, and it’s not like Tony’s just going to fuck into him unprepared. He shifts slightly to the side, brings his arm back, and smacks Beck’s ass, watches the muscles ripple and tighten in shock. Fuck, he really is hot. Beck hisses and spreads his legs a little wider. 

“You’re an asshole,” Beck grits out. He doesn’t try to get away though. 

Tony growls and slides one finger into Beck easily, then a second, working them in and out. Beck sucks in a breath and puts his head down on the table again, his hips rocking on Tony’s hand. He leans over and scrapes his teeth over the back of Beck’s neck. He can’t wait to feel Beck clenching that tight around his knot. 

“Ready for me, Beck?” Tony smirks and pushes a third finger in. “Or do you need more prep to take my knot? It can get pretty big,” Tony teases. If he’s honest he won’t be able to keep up this banter for long; his brain already feels like it’s melting. He just wants to shove his knot in this tight, willing omega. 

“Don’t congratulate yourself,” Beck pants out. “It’s probably not that b-” Beck loses his sentence in a low moan as Tony strokes over his prostate. 

“Good omega; let me hear you,” Tony keeps his voice low, nearly a purr. He doesn’t want Beck to talk back to him. He wants Beck to be mindless, boneless, wants him making satisfied omega noises. He wants to hear Beck howling in pleasure, wants him purring.

Beck shivers under him, but doesn’t say anything. Tony rubs his chin against Beck’s shoulder blade, winning a soft noise. Beck’s hand is clenched into a fist near his face, like he’s trying to hide. Tony pictures pulling that fist away from Beck’s face, not letting him hide, making him show Tony how good he’s feeling. He’d twist Beck’s arm behind his back, maybe both of them so he doesn’t have any leverage when Tony fucks into him. He’ll let Beck hide for now. The risk of Beck fighting him is still too high.

Tony pulls his fingers out and Beck whines, trying to push up against him, but he presses his weight harder onto Beck’s back so he can’t move. 

“Almost there,” Tony murmurs. He gets one hand between them, the other holding Beck’s hip, and guides his cock against Beck’s hole. Savors the anticipation and the impatient little sound Beck makes right before he gives underneath Tony, lets him in. He’s slick and loosened, ready for an alpha to take him.

Tony exhales slowly, teeth clenched at how tight Beck still is despite his preparation. Shit, did he do enough? He didn’t think it’d be this tight, but Beck either isn’t far enough under, doesn’t get around a lot, or both.

Beck takes little gasping breaths as Tony rocks his hips, pushing deeper little by little. Beck’s neck and back are flushed, his eyes closed, lashes fluttering. Tony presses his lips to a broad shoulder, watching Beck’s face as he slides in that last inch with a quick rough motion. Beneath him, Beck seems to slowly relax into the table while his ass flutters and clenches around Tony’s cock. Jesus, it’s been awhile since he had an omega, especially during a heat. He forgot how hot and tight everything is, forgot the burning need to mark and fuck that crawls up his spine. 

“Move,” Beck growls, laying his hand flat on the table. 

Yeah, no, he’s not gonna move now. Tony makes a warning noise low in his throat and digs his fingers into Beck’s hips. He takes a step back, shifting Beck with him so he’s still balls deep, but this gives him more room to pound Beck into the table without hurting him, the edge of the table no longer digging into Beck’s stomach. Beck is trembling, attempting to wiggle and circle his hips, but Tony holds him still. 

Tony presses his face against Beck’s back, trying to control his breathing. Beck flexes his thighs, and the movement travels all the way up his hips, everything clenching tight and releasing. Fuck, he’s good. 

“Tony.” Beck sounds more pleading now. 

He lifts his head and looks at the half of Beck’s face he can see. His eyes are still closed, so Tony can’t tell how far gone he is. 

“Hey, let me see those baby blues,” Tony says softly, smoothing his hand up Beck’s side now that he’s not trying to move so much. 

Beck’s nose wrinkles, so he’s still there for the most part. Good, and he doesn’t snap at Tony. These are good signs that he’s close to ready for a knot. He does not want to trigger Beck’s fight or flight response by knotting him too early. It’s one of the risks of a heat. So he wants to get Beck past that point and not have to worry about it while they’re fucking, because once Tony gets going he’s not going to be able to pause and check that Beck is far enough into his wave. He can barely stand staying still right now with Beck so hot and wet around him, tight and desperate. His hips twitch.

It takes a second before Beck opens his eyes, blinks at Tony with confusion, a pout turning his mouth down. He’s pretty damn far gone, the blue just a ring around his pupils.

“Lookin’ good,” Tony says. He’s satisfied that by the time he gets his knot in Beck it won’t cause any issues.

Tony stands straight and moves his hands to Beck’s hips. Beck opens his mouth, to beg or banter, Tony will never know, because he slides his dick almost all the way out of Beck; pauses, and then thrusts back in, hard, shoving Beck forward, his skin making a slick squeak against the desk.

“Oh fuck,” Beck cries out and squeezes his eyes shut again. His scent gets stronger, sweeter, hooks into Tony’s navel, and Tony gives in.

He fucks Beck hard, slow, tugging Beck’s hips back against him with each thrust and then holds there for a moment each time. It’s not that he’s trying to punish Beck or anything, his instincts just hiss ‘harder, show him you’re in charge,’ and Tony listens. Beck grunts with each thrust, taking it so well; like a good omega, Tony thinks. That thought sends a flash of fire down his spine, makes him moan. Beck is taking him perfectly, even pushing back against Tony, trying to take him deeper, harder; Beck’s shoulders tense, the muscles in his arms straining. Tony doesn’t have to pull him, Beck’s pushing back against him, working with him.

Tony groans, sweat rising on his skin, the wet slap of their bodies echoes around the lab. He lays himself over Beck again, changes the angle, wrapping his arms around Beck’s middle to switch to short sharp thrusts. Beck keens, rounds his back, pushing up against Tony, it’s not clear if he’s trying to get away or get more. Tony squeezes Beck to him, leaning his weight more heavily, forcing him back down on the table.

Beck’s noises get higher pitched as Tony’s knot swells. He can feel it catching on the rim of Beck’s hole with each thrust, that slight tug before it pops out again, and the pressure when he pushes back in. The muscles in his hips and thighs are all strung tight, his thrusts getting shorter, more erratic. Fuck, this is his favorite part, when the omega’s body is trying to hold on, trying to catch his knot, that fucking grip and tightness on his cock. Beck whimpers and moans, shaking beneath him. Those are the sounds he wants, perfect, pleased omega noises. 

He strays a hand down to brush against Beck’s dick, and Beck jerks like he’s been electrocuted. Tony wraps his hand around Beck’s dick loosely. Beck tries to curl inward, his hips stuttering, losing the rhythm they’ve built. 

Tony shoves his knot into Beck as it swells further and locks them together. His balls are drawn up tight, his whole body hot. He keeps rocking his hips, feeling his knot expand. It’s all instinct at this point, to suck a mark on Beck’s shoulder, to jerk his cock roughly until Beck gasps and shudders, until he feels Beck’s body clench tighter and hot come spills over his hand. Tony comes with a choked off noise as Beck’s ass milks his knot.

The mating gland on Beck’s shoulder has turned pink and swollen, right near Tony’s mouth. It’s so temptingly unmarked, not even the imprint of an almost mate; it looks untouched. Tony wants to bite, sink his teeth into the meat of Beck’s shoulder, pierce the skin of that gland and lick the blood away. He could bite, bond, make Beck his to breed and keep. He’s perfect right here on Tony’s knot.

Tony growls softly and sucks bruises along Beck’s shoulders and the back of his neck, not fully conscious of why he shouldn’t bite there, but knowing it wouldn’t end well.

The tension goes out of Beck all at once, until it feels like he’s melting under Tony, melting against the desk, his body no longer a solid. Tony worries Beck is just going to slide off the table and sink to the floor, but his shaky legs stay beneath him. 

Tony rubs his scent over the back of Beck’s neck, across Beck’s back, rumbling low and soothing while their breathing syncs and returns to normal.

It doesn’t feel like very long before Beck starts squirming and moving. Tony’s not sure when he closed his eyes, but he can feel Beck’s muscles rippling underneath his cheek. Beck twists under him and then straightens out. He stays still after that so Tony doesn’t move, doesn’t open his eyes. Knotting really takes it out of him, he’s not the young alpha he was once. 

Beck doesn’t seem to mind his weight, feels steady beneath him. He’d start squirming or whining if something was wrong. They should have some time between waves. Tony’s thoughts start making sense again, start becoming full sentences. He needs to convince Beck to go home before the next wave hits. He can’t allow Beck to stay in the lab, available to any alpha who catches his scent.

Tony finally lifts his head; makes a face at the marks along Beck’s shoulders. His mating gland is untouched though, so that’s good. It’s interesting to him that Beck’s gland seems… virginal. Has no one tried to bond him? Even a one-night stand could accidentally bite. Most omegas have a couple scars, bites that didn’t bond, bites outside a heat.

This is not a road his mind needs to travel. He shouldn’t have marked Beck up like this, shouldn’t have fucked him in the first place. Shit.

_Shit._

“Are you on birth control?” Tony asks, leaning up a little. 

Beck scoffs. “Of course, I’m not a moron.” 

“That’s a relief. I don’t want any little Starks running around because of this,” Tony says casually. He thinks of Beck’s unmarked gland, the pink fullness of it, pictures Beck round and full with his pup. He shakes his head slightly, that’s just alpha brain, just the result of their scents mixed and filling the room. This isn’t a big deal. It’s just sex, emotionless, necessary heat sex, he tells himself.

It’s not like he enjoys Beck’s antagonizing and pushback. He was just doing Beck a favor so he can get back to work. Like bringing him coffee.

Tony sets his chin on Beck’s shoulder blade, focusing on what he’s doing. He’s got a laptop open in front of him and is messing with one of his projectors… is he really working right now? Is that why he was squirming around? To reach the laptop? Jesus, he’s never seen an omega so single-minded. He’s still knotted on Tony’s cock!

Tony swallows back a growl and shifts his hips slightly so Beck will feel the pressure and tug of his knot. Beck’s hands spasm and he drops what he was messing with onto the table, planting his hands, and catching himself with a soft gasp. 

“What the hell, Stark,” Beck hisses. His legs are trembling a little. 

“I had to move, my leg was falling asleep,” Tony says innocently. 

Beck snorts and picks up his projector again. “Bullshit, you’re just a typical alpha. You want all the attention to be on you and your big knot,” Beck says, mocking. 

“It is pretty big,” Tony says, can’t help needling at Beck. 

“Shut up,” Beck says, and Tony can hear the way he rolls his eyes. 

“Just surprised you can focus enough to work,” Tony says with a shrug. He rubs his chin on Beck’s shoulder, feels the tremor under Beck’s skin. His scent has become lighter, not as overwhelming. 

“Not all of us think with our dicks,” Beck grumbles. “Now be a good alpha and shut up while I work.” 

Tony rolls his eyes. As soon as his knot shrinks, he’s going to his floor and having a drink. And a shower. Definitely a shower. Maybe a drink in the shower, just like Malibu. God, how long do knots last again? It’s been at least five years since he fucked an omega in heat, longer even, before he started dating Pepper. Life with a beta was so much less complicated. Sure, he still popped a knot every now and then when he really got going, but it wasn’t like this.

He doesn’t want to think too hard about Pepper though. Maybe this is a good thing? A quick rebound with a hot omega. An omega who works for him. An omega who is leading a major project that debuts in a week. What could go wrong? He should think about work. That’s safe, right?

“So who is going to be controlling the rendering? If we’re not projecting my thoughts live?” Tony asks. 

“I am, obviously. I’ll be backstage to make sure there aren’t any hiccups. God knows you can’t do a presentation without something going wrong. Or psychopaths interrupting,” Beck says coldly. “I’ll have total control over the projections, and I’m working on a program to manipulate the rendering as it’s happening. Just in case.” 

“As it’s happening? That would have to be quick coding. It would take an entire team,” Tony says, standing up from Beck’s back slightly. 

“Exactly; my program would do the coding automatically, faster than any human could. You would just have to put the commands into the system. A type of back-up if the retro-framing isn’t available,” Quentin says. His voice takes on a different tone when he’s talking about his projects, reverent, passionate. Not the defensive and condescending tone he gets with Tony. “Not that any of my projects need back-up; they work perfectly. It’s the human element that can fuck things up.” Beck turns his head back enough to look at Tony challengingly. 

“Oh sure, humans fuck up everything,” Tony says airily, ignoring Beck’s pointed glare. 

He doesn’t expect it to burrow under his skin, lodge in his throat. He thinks about Killian, Pepper, even Ultron. It’s not just humans that fuck everything up, it’s Tony. What if this presentation does go wrong? It’s him and Beck knows it. This is just another thing he’s fucked up already, knotting an employee. He feels oddly raw and hurt. 

“Christ, Stark, you’re so sensitive,” Beck says with disgust. He stands up more, pressing his back against Tony’s chest, pushing his head back against Tony’s shoulder. What is he-? The scent of warm omega floods him, comforting. 

Tony noses at the crook of Beck’s neck, a little stunned. Is Beck trying to reassure him? It’s oddly nice of him. Or is it just some omega instinct because the alpha knotted in him isn’t happy? He shouldn’t read too much into it; this is just biological. 

Beck shrugs him off after a minute, his ears pink. They don’t say anything, but Beck goes back to the laptop, fiddling with the projector in front of him. Tony sighs, glances around the lab, finding all the cameras. He’ll have to delete this feed later; no need to give everyone more bad press on him. 

His knot goes down enough for him to slip out of Beck. He takes a step back, hums in satisfaction when no glimmer of come shows at Beck’s hole right away. He came deep enough to keep it inside for a while. Tony shakes his head, pulls on his clothes. This was a one-time thing; he has to convince Beck to ride the rest out at home. 

Beck pulls his slacks up, not turning around to look at Tony. “I need you to re-record the way you want the memory to change. I want multiple recordings to pull the render from.” He turns and tosses the sunglasses to Tony. “Just in case,” Beck says. Tony catches the glasses, still not fully with it. His head feels… strange. It’s not a lot, but it’s distracting, it’s- he’s not firing on all cylinders. 

“Right, sure,” Tony says and puts the glasses on. He walks over to the recording zone. Beck’s still shirtless, his chest toned, a thick trail of dark hair leading down under the waistband of his pants. 

He tries to concentrate on how he wants this memory to go, gets it to start, but then it flickers. It’s hard to think about his parents right now. Beck is staring at him with that post-sex haze still in his eyes, and the scent of fresh baked banana bread is everywhere. It’s hard to think about one regret with such a recent mistake staring him in the face. Tony pulls the glasses off and rubs at the bridge of his nose. 

“Can you keep a single thought in your head?” Beck says with disgust. “I know you think everything just turns out alright, but there’s a lot of hard work people put into making these things go smoothly.” 

“I’m aware,” Tony says with a growl to his voice. “I just need a minute.” 

Beck clenches his jaw, but doesn’t argue or push. He waits until Tony is ready, points at him once they’re recording. They get the memory, but just barely. Tony snatches the glasses off his face when they’re done. There’s something unsettling about being able to see his memory play out differently, like he’s rewriting it, but now he has both memories vying for place. 

“Good, that’s all I needed you for,” Beck says, waving a hand. He goes back to his laptop, brow drawn down, focused. 

Tony could just walk away. Beck has made it clear he’s not necessary. But what happens when the next wave hits, when Beck is in this lab alone? It’s a liability for sure. And the thought of another alpha stumbling on Beck and taking him, maybe even claiming him… it makes a creepy crawly feeling slither across his shoulders. Tony tries to shake it off, but it’s hard to walk away from that scent. 

“You should go home,” Tony says, his voice sounding far away. The alpha part of him whispers _come home with me._

Beck rolls his eyes. “No, and I won’t argue again. I’m not going, and that’s that.” 

Tony steps closer, watching Beck work, his scent mouthwatering, tempting. And layered over that is Tony’s scent, light, but claiming. He wants to make it thicker, warn other alphas away. He breathes in deeply. Fuck, Beck smells too good to leave here. It would be irresponsible, right? Right. 

“What if you came upstairs,” Tony suggests. It’s casual, this whole thing is casual. 

Beck looks up sharply, expression suspicious. “What?”

“Come up to my floor. Ride out your heat in the tower, but- somewhere safer. I mean, who knows if you’d even make it home before the next wave, and then- well- I don’t want to be responsible for whatever could happen.” Tony shrugs. Does he look too eager? He’s not inviting Beck up for more sex, he just wants Beck to be protected.

“I’m working. I don’t have time for this,” Beck says dismissively. “I’ll be fine.” 

“Bring your work up; you’ll still have access to the network, all your files,” Tony says. He’s not entirely sure why he’s pushing so hard. Maybe it’s the lingering taste of Beck’s skin, the feeling of being needed, or just animal want. Or maybe he just wants to help; he always wants to help, wants to fix things, and this is such an easy thing he could help with. 

Never mind that his help doesn’t always make things better. 

Beck stares at him, blue eyes dark and intense. Tony shoves his hands in his pockets, trying to telegraph ‘no big deal’ with his body language. 

“C’mon, I’m too old to spend a heat in a lab. I’ve got a nice bed, and it smells like you’re gonna hit peak soon.” Tony quirks an eyebrow. 

“Alright,” Beck says slowly. “But this doesn’t mean anything.” 

“Obviously,” Tony says.

Beck gathers up his materials and puts some of them in a bag. He hugs his laptop to his chest with one hand and follows Tony to the elevator. 

“Friday, top floor,” Tony says. He puts his hands behind his back, rocking on the balls of his feet. This is probably a huge mistake. Giant. 

Beck’s scent fills the space, worms into Tony’s brain, makes his mouth water with the desire to lick and bite and scent. His own scent rises. He glances over and sees Beck’s jaw twitching, his hands tightening on his computer. Beck doesn’t look at him.

The doors open and Beck strolls out, but his movements are tense and jerky. Tony steps out and watches Beck carefully. Yeah, bringing a heat dazed omega into a new space might not have been his best idea. Omegas can get territorial, and it was probably helping Beck to have his own scent everywhere in the lab.

“Nice place, bit ostentatious,” Beck says, looking around the open floor plan. Tony definitely could have made it more ostentatious; Pepper held him back when decorating. There are a lot of red and gold elements though; they’re good colors together!

“Thanks,” Tony says. “Make yourself at home, set-up camp wherever.” He goes into the kitchen to make some coffee, wondering if maybe something stiffer would be better. Yeah, they probably both need a drink. 

He turns on his heels and catches Beck dragging his wrist over the cushions of the couch. Beck doesn’t look at him, just sets up his laptop on the coffee table. Tony crosses the room to the bar. Beck settles on his knees, resting back on his calves in front of the laptop. It’s as if Tony has disappeared, Beck’s totally focused on his screen. Tony sighs, shakes his head, and pours himself a glass of scotch.

Well, if he doesn’t exist to Beck, then what’s the harm in watching him? Tony can’t help but think of Beck on his knees for another reason, servicing an alpha, preferably Tony, looking up at him with those big blue eyes. Tony shivers and pulls out another glass. 

“You want a drink?” Tony says. 

“No, thanks.” Beck’s eyes dart up at him. “I don’t drink when I’m working,” he says scornfully. 

There it is, the judgey asshole he expected. Tony sips his drink, watching Beck work. Beck shifts and makes a disgusted face, color blooming high on his cheekbones. His scent gets a little thicker. Tony downs the rest of his glass. Fuck it, he’s got an omega in heat in his space. He’ll show Beck the best time he’s ever seen. 

“Do you ever relax?” Tony asks, sitting in an armchair across from Beck with his legs casually spread. Because this is casual. And if Beck wanted to crawl over here and pull out Tony’s cock, well, he wouldn’t stop him.

“Yes, but not when-”

“When there’s a deadline? Yeah, I’ve heard,” Tony interrupts. “Okay, but why would you work through a heat? It’s like two days tops.” 

Beck shrugs. “I don’t usually spend them with an alpha anyway, might as well get something done while I can.” He glances at Tony suspiciously. “Why do you care?”

“I’m just curious.” Tony taps his fingers on his leg. “You’ve been with an alpha before though, right?” He thinks of Beck’s mating gland, eyes drawn to it.

Beck’s face twists in scorn. “Of course. I’m thirty years old.” Beck turns his attention back to the laptop. 

“Right, of course,” Tony says. He can’t tell if it’s some alpha want, or his curiosity, but he can’t stop thinking about Beck’s mating gland. “It just seems like… you weren’t ready for your heat.”

“Stress can bring it on early,” Beck snaps. “I didn’t come up here for a little post-sex scotch and chit-chat.”

Tony closes his eyes briefly and takes a breath. Okay, so Beck is maybe too prickly for this get to know you stuff. This was a bad idea, Beck just needed to be alone in his lab, could have ridden this heat out on his own. He’s an adult who can make his own decisions. 

“Why did you come up here, then?” Tony asks tiredly.

Beck fixes him with a challenging glare. “Why’d you invite me?”

Tony shakes his head. “You first.”

“Then I guess you’ll never know,” Beck says simply and goes back to his work.

Tony gets up and goes back to lean against his bar, sipping his drink. Why would Beck agree? Was it just an omega thing, an alpha is offering something, so he says yes? Is Beck trying to get him to bite him, mate him? Maybe he’d believe that if Beck had shown any previous interest in dating him, or fucking, but it’s always been business with Beck.

He doesn’t need to save everyone; that’s what Pepper would tell him. She’d say he’s not responsible for everyone else’s decisions. It sure feels like he is, feels like he’s held responsible for their decisions. What if Beck is just here because he thought Tony would be angry if he rejected the offer?

He turns to look at Beck again, his scent curling around Tony, tugging his senses. He feels warm, and he’s not entirely sure if it’s the alcohol or Beck. He doesn’t thinks Beck is the type to give a fuck about whether or not Tony would be angry. They’ve stood toe to toe during concept meetings, and Beck didn’t back down.

Beck’s scent gets sweeter, thicker; he’s definitely hitting a peak. At first glance, Beck looks unaffected, his eyes still glued to his laptop, but they’ve gone a little glazed, not scanning like before. Tony tosses back the rest of his drink. His dick already at attention. There’s a slight tremble to Beck’s hands on the keyboard. 

“Will you stop staring at me? I can’t fucking focus,” Beck snarls, jerking his head up to look at Tony. 

Jesus, this omega. “Really? You think that’s why you can’t focus? Because I’m looking at you?” 

“Yes,” Beck says angrily. “Yes, it’s your- your stupid scent.” 

Beck goes back to typing furiously. He starts rocking back and forth on his heels. Tony shakes his head. 

“My scent isn’t the problem here,” Tony says, trying to stay level headed. It’s a losing battle, he knows. An omega in peak is like a force of nature. “You’re one move away from presenting.” 

“I’m not,” Beck says stubbornly. “I’m fine.” He glares at Tony, licks his lips. 

Tony holds his gaze, and can see Beck’s pupils growing larger, his breath gets shorter. The scent he’s putting out is mouth-watering. Ripe, warm, sweet omega in peak. It’s so thick Tony can nearly taste it. 

“The bed’s gonna be more comfortable,” Tony says, the words heavy in his mouth. His senses feel sharpened; he can see the sweat beading Beck’s forehead, smells his slick. 

Beck shoves himself up, swaying where he stands, but growls when Tony takes a step closer. Beck had liked a bit of force in the lab; he might be the kind of omega that needs a strong hand. Or is he the kind that wants to pick his alpha, allow the alpha close? He growls back at Beck, low, soft. Beck balls his hands into fists and his growl is furious, shoulders bunched high. 

Alright, he can try a different tact. Tony turns his back to Beck and thinks _see, I trust you, I’m not a threat._ He tries to telegraph that message with his scent and his body language. He tries to relax his shoulders, tucking his chin in. He can hear Beck moving closer, can smell the heat coming off him. Beck circles him, keeping up a low growl, daring him to move. Tony watches, his own breath coming a little faster; shit he wants to pounce so badly. He swallows, trying to keep control of himself. Beck’s scent is tugging and tugging, filling up his mind until all he can think about is burying himself in that slick heat. 

Tony shifts his weight from one leg to the other, toward Beck, and the reaction is immediate. Beck snarls and snaps his teeth at Tony, looking feral. Jesus Christ, no wonder no one has tried to mate him if he looked like that. Tony takes a step back, and immediately curses himself, second wrong move. Beck narrows his eyes and stalks forward. Tony can’t move again, can’t react to this display of dominance. He clenches his jaw, stands his ground. Beck rumbles a warning growl.

Beck steps within arm’s reach. He could grab Beck and lick over his neck, drag him to the bedroom, but that could backfire. He could get a handful of snarling, fighting back omega, and he doesn’t want to force anything. Beck hesitates, sniffs at him, and then puts one hand on Tony’s chest, leaning close. Tony’s mouth waters, Beck’s neck right next to his face. Tony squeezes his eyes shut; he’s done this enough to know if he moves now he’d have to call the Iron Man armor to save him from a feral omega. 

Beck plasters himself to Tony, rubs his cheek and jaw over Tony’s shoulder, scenting him with a low rumble. Relief and pride crash through Tony in equal measures. Of course everything worked out; he’s already knotted Beck once, why would he reject him now? Tony moves slowly, brings a hand up to tip Beck’s chin and slots their mouths together, kissing him rough and demanding. His hand strays to Beck’s neck, stroking the soft skin, trails his fingers over Beck’s mating gland, and down his still bare chest. Beck moans into his mouth. Beck shoves at his own pants, dropping them to the floor. 

“Bedroom,” Tony mumbles. He does not want to risk rolling off the couch, or having to stand while knotting again. 

Beck is either too far gone to care, or too far gone to comprehend because he doesn’t move, just sucks on Tony’s lower lip, pressing himself the length of Tony’s body, all muscle and bare skin. Beck kisses like he would devour Tony if given the chance. Tony groans. God, Beck is young and toned and fucking gorgeous. Beck scrabbles at Tony’s clothes, pushing his jacket off and tugging on his t-shirt.

“Hey, we should- we should make it to the bedroom,” Tony says, panting. Beck is focused on getting his pants off. Tony growls softly hoping this doesn’t backfire. Beck freezes and looks at Tony in confusion. “Bedroom,” Tony says in his commanding voice, low and hungry. 

Beck whines and rubs against him, mouths at his jaw. Tony shakes his head, but Beck seems a little more pliable. He curls an arm around his waist, guiding him out of the living room. Beck’s legs seem a little shaky. There’s no worry about him not being far gone enough for a knot. He’s ready for one now, must have been pushing back his need in order to work a little longer before it took him over. 

Tony closes the door of the bedroom behind them. Beck makes a pleased noise and climbs onto the bed. 

“Friday, heat protocols, no visitors, no footage, and turn down the temp in here a smidge,” Tony says, stripping off the rest of his clothes. 

He doesn’t take his eyes off Beck, who’s rubbing his face on both the pillows, sprawled on the bed, momentarily distracted from getting a knot to scent the new room. Tony almost feels dizzy off his scent, has to shake his head. This is crazy, this is not a good idea, but he can always blame these dumb ideas on his dick. He’s an alpha, he can’t help it. 

Tony steps up to the bed and Beck rolls onto his back. His knees are drawn up and apart, and he tilts his hips, presenting submission. Tony climbs onto the bed, his cock heavy and full between his legs, the scent of Beck’s slick driving him crazy already. Beck doesn’t present his throat, but pounces, as much as he can, wrapping himself around Tony and pushing his hips up, trying to push himself onto Tony’s cock. 

Tony shudders, his dick sliding through the mess of slick and come already leaking out of Beck. He bears down on Beck, lying on top of him, pinning him to the bed, but that only drives him wilder, bucking his hips and whining. 

“Hey, hey, shh, we’ll get there,” Tony says. He noses under Beck’s jaw, licks at his neck. 

Instead of calming him down, this only seems to spur Beck on, wiggling his hips, trying to force Tony into him with a growl. Tony gives up trying to control any of what’s happening. He pins Beck’s hips long enough to get the head of his cock inside, and that is what calms Beck a little. He’s panting and clenching around Tony already. He could have opened him up a little more. 

Beck makes a throaty noise and grabs at Tony’s hips, his ass, pulling him closer, deeper. Fuck, he forgot what this was like; having a squirming, desperate omega, needing him, needing his knot. Tony rolls his hips, trying to slowly push in. Beck arches beneath him, forcing him balls deep. Tony shivers while Beck twitches and moans, eyes heavy lidded, chest rising and falling rapidly. 

“There you go, you’ve got all of it,” Tony breathes out. He grabs Beck’s legs and pushes them wide so he can lean forward, really grind into him. 

That’s when Beck lets out a guttural moan and offers his throat in submission. Tony rumbles with pleasure and leans forward. He licks and bites at the smooth skin, sucks a claiming mark on his neck. This heat is Tony’s. He keeps rolling his hips on instinct. 

Beck whines and rakes his fingers down Tony’s chest. “Knot, need your knot,” Beck pants out. He looks wild-eyed and flushed. 

Tony moans and fucks Beck hard. He’s tight and still squirming, his scent thick, peak heat and sweet. Tony drops his mouth to Beck’s chest, sucks on one nipple, making Beck arch up off the bed, head pressed into the pillow. Tony pins his arms to the bed with a growl. Beck shudders and squeezes his eyes shut. He wants submission, wants Beck to give up the fight to him, wants to knot him, tie them together, make Beck his. 

Tony freezes mid-thrust. That’s not- this is just alpha instinct. He’s just reacting to Beck’s scent and his desperation. Beck keens, blinking his eyes open, dazed and teary. Tony starts moving again, his breathing harsh. There’s a catch as he pulls out, his knot finally swelling. Beck clutches at the bed, then twists his arm under Tony’s hand so he can hold on to Tony’s forearms. Tony licks over his jaw, shoves in again, rougher now. He manages to pull his knot out one more time, dragging it out to feel that perfect friction. It’s risky to keep fucking an omega through this, but God, it feels good. If he can’t get his knot back in it could mess up Beck’s heat, and even if he does shove it in anyway they could both get hurt. The look on Beck’s face though, when his knot slides home, will be worth this risk.

There’s a moments panic as he grinds his knot against Beck’s slick hole, Beck already clenching down, whining. Beck arches, and there’s a give as Tony’s knot pops into him. Beck’s eyes roll back and Tony moans, his knot locking them together. He’s not fully there yet; it’s harder for alphas to get off before their partners. They’re meant to trigger each other, but Beck hasn’t come yet. Tony circles his hips, slowly rocking his knot deeper. He shouldn’t need to touch Beck’s cock to get him off this far into his heat. 

Tony rubs his thumb over Beck’s cock and he howls. Yeah, too oversensitive for that. Tony keeps rocking, can feel his balls pulling tighter and tighter, but they just can’t get there. _Fuck_. He can’t think enough to figure this out. Beck thrashes beneath him. Tony lets go of his arms and Beck leans up and bites Tony’s shoulder hard, not letting go as Tony shakes through his orgasm, finally fucking coming, his knot pulsing, his whole-body pulsing. Beck comes then, hips twitching, and he clamps down tight on Tony’s knot, milking him for all he’s worth. 

Stars pop in Tony’s vision. He just keeps coming and coming, and it won’t stop. Beck licks at his shoulder, hands sliding down to run over Tony’s ribs and sides. He shivers, jerks his hips again. Beck makes a pleased noise, wraps his legs around Tony’s waist, keeping them tight together, forcing Tony the tiniest bit deeper inside him. Beck slits his eyes in pleasure and tips his head back, throat and shoulders on display for marking. 

Tony doesn’t hesitate, sucking bruises along Beck’s collarbone, scraping his teeth over the heat claim on Beck’s throat. Beck moans, uses one hand to comb through Tony’s hair and lets it rest on the back of his neck. Tony presses down, lying over top Beck while he’s knotted. 

He lets his mind drift, dropping his head to rest against Beck’s chest. Beck’s heartbeat is slowing back to a normal rate. Tony forgot about this part too, the calm after knotting, when there’s nothing to do but talk, or kiss, or in this case, catch his freaking breath. Beck is a fucking handful, one of the wildest omega’s he’s bedded. Wild isn’t the right word, maybe fiercest, intensist? That’s not a word. Bitiest?

Beck nuzzles his head, shifts slightly, and tugs Tony’s hair to move him. Tony’s thoughts scatter as he shifts up a little further, going wherever Beck wants him. Apparently, Beck wants him with his nose buried in the crook of Beck’s neck. Tony licks over the skin there, purring, boneless, and mindless. Truly, there’s no better place to be than knotted inside an omega. 

Tony’s brain comes back online slowly. Beck is tracing his fingers over Tony’s back in what feels like specific lines. He presses down and drags a finger over a line, a stinging, shooting pain follows his finger. 

“Ow,” Tony grumbles. He leans up on his arms so he can look at Beck’s face. “What are you doing?” 

“I left a lot of marks,” Beck says smugly. “You sure you can handle me?” 

Fuck that’s hot. Claw marks up and down his back are just proof he made Beck lose his damn mind.

Tony smirks and shifts slightly, making Beck’s eyes flutter and his mouth drop open. “Oh yeah, I can handle you.” 

Beck snaps his mouth shut, color blooming high on his cheeks, different from a heat flush. He gets this pinched look around his mouth that Tony doesn’t like. He wants that soft post-knot calm back. 

“Don’t get too full of yourself,” Beck mutters looking to the side.

“How can I when you’re full of me?” Tony says, grinning.

Beck groans and covers his face with one hand. “That’s it, no more talking. I have to leave,” he says.

Tony laughs and nuzzles Beck’s jaw. This isn’t terrible. Beck seems calmer and less like he’s about to rip Tony’s throat out, which is nice. Beck tips his head to the side, presenting his pink and untouched bonding gland. Does he know what he’s doing? Tony kisses just beneath it and Beck goes boneless under him. 

“Are you going to purr for me?” Tony says, keeping his voice low, sultry. 

Beck slants a look up at him, somehow cutting and seductive. “I’ll purr when you’ve been good enough to make me purr.” 

Tony raises an eyebrow. “Is that a challenge?” 

“No, because I know you can’t meet it,” Beck says with a shrug. “Now shut up, I’m thinking.” 

“About what?” Tony frowns, fighting the urge to bite and press Beck down and force his knot deeper. Not a challenge his ass. He’s an alpha, fucking an omega is like his personal Olympics. 

Beck sighs deeply, resigned. “I’m thinking we’ll need between four and ten projectors to get the best result. I’d have a better idea if I knew what the stage looked like. How much time will we have to set-up?”

Tony stares at him for a moment. He shouldn’t be surprised that’s where Beck’s mind has gone, yet, here he is, surprised. How can Beck switch tracks so quickly, as if he wasn’t completely focused on getting a knot ten minutes ago. Tony’s good, Tony’s a fucking genius if he does say so himself, but sometimes keeping up with Beck’s rapid changes is more challenging than he would like. Actually, it’s just that he would rather linger in that soft space after sex, he’d rather be kissing Beck silent.

Would Beck let him though? Tony leans down again and trails his lips over Beck’s jaw, feels him shudder in pleasure, but it doesn’t match the soft warning growl that comes out of him.

“I told you to shut up; that didn’t mean I wanted you to distract me,” Beck says.

“What else am I supposed to do with my mouth?” Tony arches an eyebrow.

Beck tangles a hand in his hair and tugs, painfully. “How about answering my damn question.”

Tony winces and leans back to look down at Beck. “Fine, the stage is your typical auditorium stage, uh, you’ll have about two hours for set-up, I think someone is taking me on some bullshit tour around a new building. The props and outlines for the projection will be set-up before we arrive.”

“Two hours? Fuck, fine, that might be tight, but we’ll have time to run it through once before the presentation, right? You have that built into the schedule?” Beck’s intensity is back, full force. Tony can’t decide if he likes this better than needy demanding Beck. He supposes they’re both intense. 

“I might?” Tony settles down on top of Beck. Holding himself up is too much work right after two strenuous waves of knotting. “You can run through it without me though.”

Beck closes his eyes and raises a hand to his forehead, like he can’t even look at Tony. “No, I fucking can’t. If I go through the presentation without you people will know it’s not the glasses.”

“Right, right,” Tony says, distracted by the way Beck’s mating gland seems to throb. If he put his mouth on it, would he be able to feel Beck’s heartbeat? Would they be good mates? Would Beck think he’s a good alpha?

Ugh, no, he needs to stop thinking with his alpha brain. 

Tony breathes a sigh of relief when his knot deflates enough to pull out. The release of pressure feels almost as good as coming. He flops to the side, too worn out to get up and clean off. He needs a fucking nap, Jesus. 

Beck hops out of bed easily. Does everyone have to make him feel so old? Granted, Tony did most of the heavy lifting that round. 

“Bathroom’s through there,” Tony gestures lazily. 

Beck isn’t in there long. He comes out, glances at Tony, and then leaves the room without a word. Well, alright then. Tony heaves himself out of bed and cleans up in the bathroom. He splashes cool water on his face to try to clear away the muddled alpha thoughts. Beck is not a potential mate; he’s a rebound, a nice omega distraction.

He’ll go check on Beck and then order food. There are at least two more waves coming, depending on how long Beck’s heats typically last. They’ll need something to keep their strength up. 

Tony steps out of the bathroom to find Beck sprawled on the bed, laptop at the foot of the bed. He’s typing away, focused as ever. Huh, that’s- unexpected. Then again, Beck’s scent is all over the room. Tony didn’t expect him to come back though. Beck doesn’t even look up at him. Tony hesitates by the door, unsure if he should try to get back in bed. Might as well, right? 

He sits down on the bed, glancing at Beck’s screen. There is his memory, or at least a scene of it, paused. Gross, he does not want to be looking at his parents right now. He turns, taking in the long lines of Beck’s body instead. He smells like sex, and pleased omega, and Tony’s scent is layered over all of that. 

If they were up here for fun, Tony would lay himself over Beck’s back. He’d grind against that muscular ass until they were both hard and ready to go again. Beck would be soft eyed, and soft mouthed, laughing maybe. Has he ever heard Beck really laugh? Not some sarcastic noise, but a genuine laugh? 

His alpha brain whispers to do it, pin him down and let that slick omega warm his cock until he’s ready for another knot. Tony’s mouth goes dry at the thought. He’s not even thinking about it before he reaches out a hand, presses lightly on the small of Beck’s back, runs a hand over his ass, squeezing one cheek, getting a glimpse of his pink come-smeared hole. Tony smoothes his hand down over Beck’s thigh, his hand resting there. 

Beck growls softly, looks over his shoulder. “I’m not a show pony,” he says. 

Tony bites back the perfect reply, knowing he’d be tossed off the bed so fast if he called Beck a broodmare. He massages the back of Beck’s thigh lazily, trails his hand back up the way it came. Beck shivers, goosebumps rising, but he stares Tony down like he’s angry. Tony rubs his hand over the small of Beck’s back, over his tailbone, rubbing his thumb over the barely there bone at the end of Beck’s spine, where his truly impressive ass begins.

Beck groans and it’s like his back half is pulled up by a string, his ass elevating without his permission. Beck presents for him so nicely, knees on the bed, thighs spread, and his back arched. 

“Fuck,” Tony says appreciatively. He climbs fully on the bed behind Beck. 

“I swear to God, Stark,” Beck growls, but if he was going to say anything more it’s lost in a moan when Tony presses his tongue to Beck’s ass. 

He definitely did not clean himself up in the bathroom because more come oozes out of him as he clenches and twitches. Tony watches the white line of come drip down before he catches it on his tongue. Beck gasps, his thigh jolts against Tony’s arm like maybe he’s trying to close his legs. Tony hums and drags his tongue up the back of Beck’s balls, up to his tight leaking hole. His slick is musky and sweet, it’s enough to drive an alpha crazy, and then that mixed with his own come? Fuck, he could keep Beck in bed for days; hell, if Beck was his omega he would. 

Would keep him in bed and fuck him over and over again, until he’s a bundle of need, until he’s soft and panting, begging. Fuck him until Tony’s seed takes, until he can breed his omega up; everyone will see how happy he keeps his omega, how well fucked. 

Tony groans against Beck’s ass, licking into him hungrily, gripping his ass to spread him wide, keep him in place. Beck pushes back against his mouth. 

“Tony,” Beck moans. 

Yes, _yes_ , he wants Beck to sound just like that. He doubles his effort, spearing his tongue into Beck, swirling it around, chasing every drop of come and slick that leaks out. He rubs his goatee against Beck’s taint, forcing a high-pitched noise from him. Tony rumbles his approval, nips at Beck’s ass before diving back in. His jaw is starting to ache, saliva and slick dripping down his chin, but Beck is making so many wonderful sounds. 

“Tony, _Tony_ , please,” Beck keens, hands fisting in the sheets. 

Tony keeps one hand on Beck’s ass, digging his fingers into the muscle, and uses the other to stroke Beck’s cock. Tony strokes him tight and slow, most of his concentration on what he’s doing with his tongue. It’s only three pumps before Beck is coming with a cry, convulsing on Tony’s tongue. He wants to make Beck howl. Tony laps up the slick that leaks out until Beck sinks down, boneless, unable to keep himself up anymore. God, Tony can’t stop, can’t get enough, licks until Beck is squirming away from his mouth with soft pained noises. 

Tony sits back, panting, wipes his mouth on the back of his hand. Beck’s face is hidden in the crook of one arm, and his laptop is somehow on the floor. That is how you get an omega to purr. His own cock is rock hard and neglected, but knotting Beck after he’s come would hurt.

“You alright?” Tony asks, his voice rough. He taps Beck’s hip with two fingers. 

Beck rolls onto his back, arches slightly to scoot up on the bed, closer to Tony. He’s heavy lidded and satisfied, purring softly. 

“Uh huh,” Beck says and nods slightly. 

Beck’s scent is so thick in the room he can’t really tell if he’s hitting another wave or not. Tony watches Beck breathe, listens to him purr and feels a bone deep satisfaction. Beck scoots a little closer, both legs on one side of Tony, his ribs brushing Tony’s knees. Beck doesn’t seem to be fully with it, but he also doesn’t seem to be in a full-blown wave. He’d really like to kiss Beck like this, see if he’s softer, sweeter, see if he’d give under Tony’s mouth instead of fighting back so much, but he knows Beck well enough to know he’d be disgusted by where Tony’s mouth just was. Tony gets up to go brush his teeth and wash his face, but a soft whine makes him pause.

Okaaay, maybe Beck is hitting another wave. 

Tony turns to the bed to see Beck squirming against the sheets, rubbing his scent over the bed. He looks at Tony, eyes soft and pleading, Jesus, how does a man normally so reserved have such expressive eyes?

“Don’t go,” Beck says and then swallows, some of the softness and haze leaving. 

“Sorry, what? What am I hearing?” Tony wants to be smug, but the look on Beck’s face is so foreign, imploring and lost. How far gone is Beck right now?

Beck pushes his head back into the bed, showing off the long pale column of his throat. Tony can picture perfectly how the dark line of a collar would look on him. Tony swallows, suddenly parched.

“I have to wash my face,” Tony says, trying to push away the heady hungry desire to pounce, to bite. An instinctive part of him knows sinking his teeth into Beck’s mating gland would put out this fire growing under his skin. The more rational part of him is fighting hard. It’s probably Beck’s scent. He’s pretty sure he accidentally sent Beck deeper into heat. He forgot an orgasm without a knot can do that. “I’ll be two seconds.” Tony gets the words out, but they’re strangled.

He leaves the door to the bathroom open, but he knows Beck won’t be able to see him from the bed. This is one of the worst ideas he’s ever had. Now he’s picturing biting Beck and collaring him? It’s alpha instinct, and he’ll repeat that until this is all over.

Tony looks at himself in the mirror, slick and come drying into his goatee, his neck still wet with Beck’s slick. Fuck, he’s wrecked; there are angry red lines down his chest and a big dark bite mark on his shoulder. He can’t see his back, but he’d bet it’s more scratched up than his chest.

He’s such a mess he just gets in the shower for two minutes, turning the water on cool to calm his painful hard on. He washes his face, rubbing a hand over his chin and down his neck to get all the slick. It was starting to make his face itch. The cool water makes his various bruises and scratches sting, but it’s worth it to soften his cock even just a little. It feels like he can think again.

Tony hops out of the shower, towels himself off, and gargles some mouthwash. Beck’s scent is so strong it’s filling the bathroom too, but something is off. Tony grabs a damp washcloth in case Beck wants to clean up a little too.

Beck is still in bed, his head practically hanging off the edge so he can show off his neck, and he’s making the saddest keening noise. Tony felt a little more in control of himself, but that noise is tugging on his heart.

“Hey, hey, we’re okay,” Tony says softly. He cups the back of Beck’s head and lifts it so he’s fully on the bed again. His scent is sour, like burning bread. Tony wrinkles his nose. Beck stops keening, but he makes a soft whimpering noise.

“I’ll be good,” Beck says breathlessly, a whine in his voice. “I’ll be a good omega, Tony, please. Please.” Tears are caught in his lashes.

Fuck.

“Christ, Beck…” Tony says without anger. This is his fault, and Beck would be furious if he could see himself. Tony shouldn’t have left him after making him come without a knot. Shit, he keeps fucking this up. He forgot how much work a heat could be, how careful you have to be.

“Tonyyy,” Beck whines and rubs his face over Tony’s wrist. “I’ll be good for you.”

A blaze of heat travels up his arm, igniting that dormant fire. Tony climbs onto the bed, running the washcloth over Beck’s forehead to cool him, then down his chest, over his stomach and thighs, cleaning up the come splattered over him.

“You’re good, you’re being good for me,” Tony says gently.

Beck squirms and bucks under his hand, still making soft unhappy noises. Tony gives in, lays himself over Beck, nuzzles his throat. Beck’s eyes flutter shut, and he goes quiet.

Tony trails his lips over Beck’s neck, up his jaw, and Beck turns his head, catching Tony’s lips in a soft, open mouthed kiss, sucking on his lower lip in a way that sends a shiver through Tony. Beck’s breathing slows, his scent is getting sweet again; he feels calmer. Tony leans back just enough to look at Beck’s face, see if he’s ready for a knot. Beck blinks at him, but it seems like he’s coming up out of the haze now that he’s calmer. Is he fighting his heat? Tony doesn’t think he’s ever been with a more difficult omega. 

“Hey, don’t fight it.” Tony runs a hand down Beck’s side. “The sooner you go under fully, the sooner you get my knot, and then this will be over.”

“Tony…” Beck swallows and more of the softness leaves his eyes. “Tony?” Beck frowns at him. “Fuck, _fuck_ , you made it worse, you- you fucking…” Beck twists under him, shoving Tony to the side. Beck rolls onto his stomach, pushing himself up on his hands and knees. “Fuck,” Beck curls over himself. “You were supposed to help, and you just- you go over the top.”

“What?” Tony stares at him. “What is happening?”

Beck presses his forehead into the bed and mewls.

“Please, please, I’ll be good,” Beck grits out the words, like they’re being torn out of him. “Give me your knot, Tony, want your knot.” Beck presses his face into the bed and whines. “I’ll be good.”

“Woah, Beck, hey, you’re good,” Tony says, thrown off at this back and forth. He rubs his hand up and down Beck’s back. He could mount Beck now, he’s sort of presenting, but he’s a little nervous about whether or not he’d get begging Beck or fighting Beck.

Beck takes a deep breath, tremors working through him. His scent is sweet still, and he’s slicking up, Tony can smell it.

“I hate this,” Beck snarls and rolls onto his back again. His eyes are dark, but still glazed. He’s fighting the heat haze instead of sinking into it. “Stupid, fucking- can’t think straight- can’t-” Beck’s breath hitches. “Begging like a bitch.”

“Beck,” Tony says quietly. He doesn’t want to have to pull the alpha voice out, but jeez, he sure is fighting it. “It’s okay, you’re in heat.”

“I just wanted to work- just- and now my head is all-” Beck pants out. 

“Beck, you should stop fighting it,” Tony says, interrupting him. “You’ll feel better if you give in.” 

“My head is all full of you and I can’t- I can’t fucking…” Beck doesn’t seem to hear him. He squirms on the bed, digging his heels in to rock his hips up, shoulders pressed down. 

Yeah, okay, he’s going to have to do something drastic. Beck looks pale and sweaty, not the healthy flush of heat. He’s fighting it too hard and it’s going to make him sick, maybe make it go on longer. 

“Quentin, stop,” Tony uses his most commanding tone. 

Beck freezes, eyes wide, hands spasming in the sheets. 

Tony places a hand in the middle of Beck’s chest, putting gentle pressure on him. “You’re good, okay, you’re being such a good omega for me,” Tony says warmly. He slides his hand up to rest gently on Beck’s throat. 

The tension slowly leaves Beck’s body, his shoulders loosen, and he settles his hips down on the bed, legs falling open. He tips his chin up, eyelids slipping to half-mast. Tony leans down and rubs his cheek against Beck’s, nuzzling him, scenting him. He turns Beck’s head and nuzzles his other cheek, he slowly lowers himself down onto Beck, pressing him into the bed. Beck makes a soft pleased noise. 

Tony moves his hand from Beck’s throat and licks that spot lightly. “You can have my knot, handsome. You’ll keep being good for me, right?” Tony murmurs, nosing along Beck’s jaw. 

Beck whines softly, the heat flush returning to his cheekbones, blooming on his chest. What Tony can see of his eyes are dark, all pupil. 

“I need a yes or no, hot stuff,” Tony says, nipping lightly at Beck’s scent point. 

“Yes, alpha,” Beck says breathlessly. Beck brings his hands up to hold onto Tony. 

Tony rumbles his approval, the warmth of having an omega under his hold spreading along the back of his neck. Satisfaction makes him feel smug. Tony grinds down against Beck, kissing over his scent points, darting his tongue out to see if Beck tastes as good as he smells. He does, fruity, and less sweet than Tony expected. Beck spreads his legs; he really is being a good omega now. 

Tony gets a hand between them to guide himself into Beck. He’s so wet, slick and tight. “Oh, fuck,” Tony breathes out. 

Beck bucks his hips, trying to fuck himself on Tony’s cock. Tony growls and presses his teeth to Beck’s throat, deepening his heat bite. _Mine,_ Tony thinks. Beck shudders, digging his fingers into Tony’s waist so hard he’s sure it’ll leave bruises, but he stops trying to take control. Tony licks his way up to Beck’s mouth, kissing him hungry and soft while he slides all the way in. Beck moans against his lips, kissing back. 

Tony leans back and pins Beck to the bed by his hips; he’s been achingly hard for too long, and his knot is already swelling, the resistance making everything better and worse. He’s going to have Beck the way he wants. Beck’s dazed, blue eyes dark. He moans loudly and tosses his head from side to side. Tony needs a better angle, wants to knot him deeper. He lies on Beck so they’re chest to chest, and rolls them over so Beck is draped over him. 

Beck purrs and takes the opportunity to lick at Tony’s neck, kiss down his chest. He gets his mouth on one of Tony’s nipples and sends sparks down his spine, makes his hips jerk harder. Tony wraps his arms around Beck, crushing Beck to him. Beck keens, burying his face in Tony’s shoulder. Tony fucks up into him hard and fast, his thighs slapping against Beck’s ass. 

Beck braces his arms on either side of Tony’s head, panting and making broken high-pitched noises with each thrust. Tony moans with him, his knot tugging a little harder on each thrust. He won’t be able to get these long thrusts in soon, and as soon as he thinks it, his knot swells. Tony tugs Beck down further and keeps fucking him in tight, short movements while he still has a little wiggle room with his knot. 

“Fuck, you’re so good, so fucking good for me,” Tony babbles, screwing his eyes shut. He’s so close, the words just fall out. “Such a good omega, so tight for me, made just for my knot, Quentin. You take my knot so well.” Tony feels Beck shudder. 

Beck makes a sobbing noise, fits his mouth to Tony’s shoulder, and bites _hard_. Tony sucks in a breath, hips pumping as he explodes inside Beck, holding him tight to get his knot deeper. Beck twitches, come pulsing over Tony’s stomach, his body tightening around Tony’s knot so hard he sees stars. 

Beck’s bonding gland is right there, right in front of his mouth, scent sweet and mouth watering. God, he wants to bite, wants to bond him, and breed him, and keep him on Tony’s knot for days. Tony sucks on the spot to make it darker, bring the blood to the surface, the taste of Beck coating his mouth, making him feel drunk off omega scent. It feels like fire is racing through him, and he knows piercing that soft gland will put it out.

Beck mouths at Tony’s shoulder in return, biting and licking, purring loud and content. Tony shudders, Beck’s bites only making him want to bite more. 

Tony turns his head away from that spot, nuzzles at Beck’s jaw, trying to get his mouth out of the danger zone. That gland is calling him, tempting him. He just has to keep repeating _rebound, rebound_ in his head, thinks the word until it has no meaning. 

He doesn’t know how much later it is when Beck lifts his head slightly, eyes still heavy lidded, and nuzzles Tony’s temple, scenting him sleepily. Beck rubs his face over Tony’s, purring softer. Tony sighs, nuzzles back. He catches Beck’s lips in a kiss, and they stay like that, kissing lazily, slow, barely moving. 

~*~

Tony wakes up in an empty bed, still naked. He does have a blanket over him, which he does not remember. He had an omega for a blanket when he fell asleep. He scrubs his hands over his face, sits up. Beck’s scent is still everywhere, all over him and his bed. 

He pulls on some briefs and wanders into the kitchen, expecting to see Beck hunched over his laptop. But it’s all just pristine counters and chairs that are never used. The only hint that someone else was there is the freshly made coffee. It’s almost nine in the morning; how early was Beck up?

Tony pours himself a mug and goes into the living room. Nothing. Dining room, which he hasn’t seen since Pepper finished designing it. Elegant, of course, but there’s no Beck. Tony frowns, worry twisting his gut. Did Beck go home in the middle of the night, ashamed or embarrassed by getting knotted by his boss? Is he angry with Tony?

“Friday? What time did Beck leave?” Tony asks. Should he send a thank you card or something? Is that tacky? Or an apology?

“Quentin Beck has not left the building,” Friday informs him. “He left your floor at five twenty-seven a.m.” 

Tony tilts his head, frowning. “He what? He’s still in the building? Where is he?” Tony knows the answer before Friday says it. 

“He’s currently in lab number four, boss. And we’re still reading elevated temperature and scent signals,” Friday says. 

Jesus Fucking Christ. 

Tony slams back his coffee and goes to his room to get dressed. Shit, he should shower, he still smells like Beck, like sex. He battles with himself for a minute, alpha part of him growling that he doesn’t want to shower, doesn’t want to clean away Beck’s scent, but if he shows up in the lab smelling like this, the rumors could be detrimental. 

Tony scrubs himself quick and vicious in the shower. He does not need Beck’s scent on him. It was a rebound. He shouldn’t even worry about why Beck is back in the lab, should say screw it, if he doesn’t want to finish his heat with Tony, it’s probably for the best. 

But the thought of another alpha mating him makes Tony’s stomach twist with jealousy. It’s just the heat claim making him feel this, but it’s still a claim, still strong enough to pull him down to the lab. Tony throws on some clothes, checks in the mirror to make sure he doesn’t have any obvious marks. His blazer covers the bites that move up his shoulder to the base of his neck, and all the other marks he found while in the shower are hidden. 

He strides into the lab like he owns it - which he does - and the scent of Beck hits him all over again. Warm, fruity, strangely comforting. Except now there’s another layer to it, something spicier, something familiar that makes his nose twitch. 

Tony’s step falters; that’s his scent, that spicy something. Beck didn’t fucking shower, didn’t clean himself, just came down to the lab smelling like heat and Tony. He sniffs the air, breathing deep. Beck is still full of him. His mouth waters. No one would dare mate with him smelling claimed like this. 

He shakes it off, rolling his shoulders and continuing towards Beck, ignoring the stares, the way people’s hands have drifted toward their phones. He should make this less obvious, should talk to other people on his way over to Beck, like this is a typical check-in. What’s the point though? Beck smells like him. 

“Hey Tarantino, how is the project coming along?” Tony says casually. He leans back on the desk, sitting on it slightly, hands curling over the edge of the desk on either side of his hips so he doesn’t reach for Beck. _Mine,_ Tony’s instincts insist. The hair on the back of his neck is on end. He can feel the gaze of every alpha in the room. Beck’s jaw twitches, his nostrils flare. He’s still in heat and he came down. Does he have no idea the ramifications of this? What this could do to his own reputation? 

“Buzz off, Stark, I have a deadline,” Beck says, not looking up. His hands have stalled out on the keyboard though. 

“Yeah, I wanted to talk to you about that,” Tony says, crossing his arms. He’s an unhappy boss, not an alpha about to pounce. Keep it casual. 

“So talk,” Beck finally looks up, challenging, but his eyes have that slight haze. How long has he been awake and on the precipice of another wave? What was his plan? Was he going to have one of his employees knot him, because that is a surefire way to lose respect. Unless his team has some weird bonding orgy sessions. 

Tony lowers his voice. “This is a private conversation.” He waits until Beck is watching him before he strides over to one of the enclosed conference rooms. It’s not a large one, but it could fit Beck’s whole team. 

He smells Beck following him more than he sees it. Beck joins him into the conference room. It’s completely soundproof, thank god. 

“Friday, lock the door and give us opaque glass, no one sees in,” Tony says as soon as the door is closed behind Beck. 

Tony turns on his heels to face this stubborn, unthinking omega. He’s furious, he realizes, a little belated, and he doesn’t know how much of it is alpha hormone induced. Furious that Beck would leave, would flaunt his mark, would risk some other alpha taking him. Why didn’t he stay?

“What do you want, Stark? Are you going to have your way with me right here?” Beck hisses. 

“You’re not out of heat, what are you fucking thinking?!” Tony says. “Everyone can smell you! Did you even think about what this would say? What people are going to think?” He’s nearly shouting by the end of his tirade. 

Beck shrinks down slightly, but rolls his eyes. “If you were going to be embarrassed by it, maybe you shouldn’t have heat claimed me.” His scent is tinged with some emotion Tony can’t quite place. Sadness, isn’t quite right, disappointment maybe?

Tony scrubs his hands over his face. “It’s not- Jesus- I’m going to blame this on your heat.” 

“So because I’m in heat I’m a fucking idiot?” Beck snarls, balling his hands into fists. “This is why I don’t spend my heats with alphas, you’re all condescending, possessive, meat-headed-”

“Did you think about how this would reflect on you and your project?” Tony interrupts, stepping forward. He wants to shake Beck, shake some sense into him. And part of him wants to bite, wants to make him complacent, make him fucking listen. “The first project the September Foundation backs is from an omega that slept with Tony Stark. The media will question whether you deserve this, whether or not you slept your way to the top. It could completely discredit you! My reputation can’t get worse, but you- you’re just on the rise and this could follow you for the rest of your career.”

Beck looks stricken, the color draining from his face. “No…”

“Yes,” Tony says, his anger draining away. He’s just tired. Tired of everyone around him getting hurt in one way or another. Tired of his every decision being judged and scrutinized. “Okay, I’m gonna call Pe- uh - my legal team. We get everyone on your team to sign NDA’s, we keep an eye on the media, try to get ahead of this. I have people who do this all the time. It’ll be fine.” 

Beck doesn’t look reassured. He looks ill, dazed; maybe it’s the combination of heat and panic Tony can smell coming off him in waves. Strong negative emotions during a heat can fuck an omega up for a while. 

“I didn’t even consider… I just- fuck,” Beck says vehemently. “FUCK!” he shouts and starts pacing the room. “NDA’s don’t matter, they could have already texted friends or family. Someone could have already leaked something to a tabloid, especially with all the gossip about you and Pepper not being together anymore…” Beck looks up, startled. “Wait, shit, _shit,_ are you still together?”

Ouch. 

“No,” Tony says with a shrug. He crosses his arms. “It was mutual.” 

Beck stops pacing, looks at him searchingly, narrows his eyes, but doesn’t say anything. Tony gets the uncomfortable feeling Beck can see through him. Beck paces like a caged tiger, back and forth in front of the wall. 

“Okay, so, we spin it like… the pressure was getting to me, we’re at the end of the project, working so closely, you offered to help out, we’re both adults, not a big deal.” Beck tugs at his hair. It doesn’t even seem like he’s talking to Tony. 

“And the tabloids will spin it that I gave you the project to sleep with you,” Tony says, watching Beck pace. His scent is upset, bitter, and the layer of heat underneath is making Tony feel foggy and reckless. He needs to soothe, reassure the upset omega. 

Beck’s breath gets uneven, rough. Tony feels helpless. He should have warned Beck, should have said something about not coming back to work still smelling like Tony, but he hadn’t thought Beck would be that careless. 

“Hey, I told you, my team is good at this, you know how much shit is written about me. That’s only half of what actually happens,” Tony says. He takes a step forward, finally grabbing Beck’s shoulders to hold him still. He pulls Beck into a hug, a little surprised when Beck lets him, when Beck melts into him, arms coming up to cling to him. 

Beck swallows. “Goddamit,” he breathes out, tears glimmering in his eyes. Jesus, Tony was not prepared to deal with this. “I earned this, I worked hard for this,” Beck says angrily and pushes his face into Tony’s shoulder. 

“I know,” Tony says. He rubs Beck’s back, slides one hand up to cup the back of his neck, petting the soft short hair there. It’s true, he didn’t hire Beck to sleep with him; the thought had never crossed his mind before, other than the odd observation that Beck has a great ass, nice shoulders. Mostly he finds Beck frustrating and annoying and bad at taking criticism. “I’ll take care of this.” 

Tony leans back, that fire starting low in his gut again, sending spikes of heat through him. Beck’s scent has filled the room, and it’s making Tony’s head fuzzy. He pictures pushing Beck down on the table and taking him right here. Would Beck let him? That’s not a road his mind needs to travel. He steps back.

He pulls out his phone, at a loss for a moment. Normally he’d call Pepper, have her take care of the little details. Rhodey doesn’t need to deal with this, and he doesn’t want to take any shit from Happy. Tony sighs and dials his legal team directly. He’ll take care of this himself. He can clean up his own messes.

“Yeah, it’s me… I know, Pepper’s a little busy. I need someone to come to lab four with twenty-three—”

“Twenty-six,” Beck says. 

“With twenty-six non-disclosure agreements. We need everyone on Quentin Beck’s team, everyone who works in lab four to sign them,” Tony says, glancing at Beck. He looks defeated, lost. His scent makes Tony’s shoulders tight with the need to pin him, scent him, bring back that sweet warm scent. “Great, yes, and then give the PR team a heads up we need a meeting later today.” 

Tony hangs up and takes a deep breath. “Okay, my people are on it. Friday, gossip protocols, let me know about any articles that mention Beck specifically, or about me with an omega.” 

“You got it, boss,” Friday says. 

Beck has his arms crossed tight. His eyes are a little wild, like a caught animal. “Fuck, I should have considered this. My mind isn’t working right, fucking heat,” Beck mutters. He rubs his forehead with the heel of his hand. 

Tony plasters himself to Beck’s back, nuzzles the back of his neck. “Hey, it’s taken care of, and your heat is almost over.” Tony rumbles soothingly. He has to get Beck’s scent back to warm and pleased, and he needs to get Beck back up to his floor. 

Beck shivers and pulls away. “I fucked this up, I need to fix it. We need to control how this looks,” he growls. Beck runs a hand through his hair, smoothing it back. “I could be a rebound… and- and you were just helping me through a heat. Feed them bits of the truth.” Beck swallows. 

“You don’t have to tell anyone anything; the people who care will think what they want no matter what you say, but most people won’t care. Just let it die down without addressing it,” Tony says seriously. He’s been there, when trying to explain something just makes it look worse.

Beck’s scent hasn’t softened or sweetened, and it doesn’t seem like his heat is lessening. Tony can’t just let him go back out there to work. What happens when this wave gets worse?

“Hey, come back upstairs, finish this out with me. You’ve got at least one more wave on the way.” 

Beck’s breathing is still rough and fast. He rolls his shoulders, squirming in yesterday’s suit. “I’m fine, if I can- can get the rendering done fast enough we can do a cold run Thursday before we leave.”

“Seriously?” Tony frowns, second guessing himself. Beck smells like he’s got another wave coming. He’s clearly still in heat now, why does he insist on pushing himself? “How long have you been fighting off this wave?”

“Why does it matter?” Beck snaps. He balls his hands into fists.

“It matters because when it hits you, it’s going to hit hard. I doubt you want to be mounted in the middle of a lab full of people,” Tony says, frustrated. “The only reason you’ve lasted this long is because you still smell like me.”

Beck snarls. “It’s not always about you! Just because you heat claimed me, doesn’t mean you control me.”

Tony huffs and closes his eyes, trying to reset his brain. This is not the argument they need to be having. Beck needs to come upstairs before his wave hits or Tony’s going to take him right here, and that feels wrong, feels like too much. He needs to be inviting, non-threatening, like he’s submitting to Beck and then he’ll be able to get his way.

“I don’t control you,” Tony says calmly. He opens his eyes, holds up his hands in surrender. “I’m just here to help, remember? When you want my knot, you can have it, but I think we should go upstairs for that. It’s just a suggestion.”

Beck’s trembling from head to toe, his breath shallow. He opens his mouth, and then closes it with a snap, staring Tony down. Tony wishes he knew what the hell was going on in Beck’s head. He watches Beck’s eyes go dark, watches his heat flush crawl from neck to jaw to cheeks. There’s a moment’s pause, Beck shifts from side to side and then pounces, pushing Tony back against the wall. Tony huffs out a startled breath and then Beck’s mouth is on his, demanding and hot. Beck presses against him, his hands working open Tony’s fly. He’s too shocked to do more than kiss back.

“Tony…” Beck whines, his eyes are glazed. He noses at Tony’s jaw, and then bites at his scent point. Tony’s cock jerks in his pants.

“Beck, hold on,” Tony tries to say, but he’s not sure if the words fully make it out of his mouth. Beck tugs him to the conference table by his half open pants. Beck hops up on the edge of the table and wraps his legs around Tony, grinding against him.

Tony groans as Beck mauls his mouth and neck, gripping Tony’s shoulders to hold him close. Fuck, oh _fuck_ , this is incredible, Beck’s scent winds around him too, he’s using everything he has to pull Tony closer. Tony digs his fingers into Beck’s thighs, rocking with him. Beck kisses him again, hungrily, one hand cupping the back of his neck.

Shit, they can’t do this in here, on the fucking conference table? Tony can’t stand here and knot Beck for half a fucking hour, and then do a walk of shame through the lab. No way in hell. Fuck, but he can’t just carry Beck out of here, everyone would see, and all the rumors would be confirmed. What if someone snaps a picture?

Tony peels Beck off him. He needs to get Beck to agree to go upstairs.

Beck leans back on his arms and keeps working his hips on Tony’s; even fully clothed it’s one of the hottest fucking things Tony’s seen. And then Beck tips his head back, rolling his body like a wave. Tony’s senses sharpen, the scent of Beck’s slick overwhelming, the whir of the air conditioning grates his oversensitive nerves.

The alpha part of him almost destroys all sense, Tony reaches out and grips Beck’s neck, rubbing his thumb over his heat claim. Beck’s mouth falls open and he shudders.

“Please, _please_ ,” Beck begs breathlessly. “Please, Tony.”

Tony closes his eyes, and holds his breath for ten seconds. He puts his hands on Beck’s hips and holds him still, holds him down to the table and pulls away as much as he can.

“Stop, Beck, stop,” Tony says, eyes still closed.

When he opens them, the expression on Beck’s face makes him wish he’d kept his eyes closed.

“You don’t want me?” Beck looks devastated. God damn those eyes.

“No, I do, I want you so bad,” Tony says quickly. “I want to give you my knot, gorgeous.”

Beck still looks confused, but less upset. He tries to wiggle closer again, reaches for Tony’s pants.

“Eh, eh, no, this isn’t the right place. We have to go upstairs,” Tony says, shaking his head. “This room doesn’t smell right.” He’ll use any excuse he can think of to get Beck to agree to go upstairs.

“Smells like us,” Beck says with a frown, sniffing the air. And the way he says ‘us’ shouldn’t make Tony’s heart pound, shouldn’t make him warm and pleased.

“No, it smells like glass cleaner, and coolant, and other people,” Tony says. “We need somewhere safer, and warmer. It’s too cold in here.” And then he’s struck with brilliance. It’s embarrassing how long it took him to think of this. “We need a nest.”

Beck blinks at him slowly. “A nest.” He repeats, but it’s not a question. Some of the haze leaves his eyes, and his brow twitches down into a frown. Shit, now he’s fighting the heat? Maybe that’s a good thing for now. They need to make it to the elevator.

“Yeah, we need a nest, or a nest-like place, you know, like a bed.” Tony backs away slowly, and Beck lets him, dropping his legs from Tony’s waist.

Beck looks around, like he’d forgotten where they are. “You want me,” Beck says, frowning in confusion.

“Oh yeah,” Tony says. He zips and buttons his pants, and tries to adjust so his hardness isn’t so fucking obvious. There’s no hope for Beck, his cock is hard, and there’s a slick patch on the seat of his pants.

Beck slides off the table, unsteady on his feet. He swallows thickly. “Fucking hurry,” Beck says, clutching onto Tony’s shirt. “I can’t- I’m- fucking hell, Stark,” Beck says breathless, but sounding more like himself than before.

Tony nods, taking this very seriously. “We’ll hurry through the lab. If they’re as stubborn as you they won’t even notice.” Beck doesn’t acknowledge his dig, just clenches his teeth.

If Tony thought it was hard being in the conference room with his senses amped up, it’s nothing compared to re-entering the lab full of people. Beck takes a quick breath and holds it, and really Tony should too, but it’s too late. Every alpha is a threat, everything is too loud. He can feel their stares. Beck strides out ahead of him like nothing is wrong; like they didn’t almost fuck on the conference table. Tony follows Beck to the elevator.

Addressing the team will be Beck’s problem. Maybe Tony should just have HR send around some video about not coming to work in heat. He makes eye contact with a beta holding a sheaf of contracts. Perfect, legal is already here. Good timing.

The elevator doors close and Beck is on Tony, pushing him up against the wall, mouthing at his neck, rubbing against his thigh. 

“Alpha,” Beck whimpers. 

Tony feels hot all over, shivery and feverish. He attacks Beck’s mouth, cupping the back of his neck. He spins them around so Beck is pinned to the wall, bites at his lips, kissing him hungry and demanding. Beck slides his hands up under Tony’s shirt, his scent a smidge unhappy. 

The elevator doors open onto Tony’s floor and he nearly sags with relief. He tugs at Beck’s clothes, frustrated by the buttons on his shirt. They stumble toward the bedroom, Beck single-mindedly stripping Tony’s clothes off. It feels like Beck’s mouth is everywhere; Tony’s jaw, his lips, down his neck. Tony shudders and shoves the rest of Beck’s clothes off, biting at his neck, his chest, staying as far from Beck’s mating gland as he can. He’s always aware of it though, aware of how it darkens, throbs, and beckons to him.

Beck moans, his hands grabbing at Tony wherever he can reach. Tony can’t seem to catch his breath, can’t get enough of Beck’s skin under his mouth. He licks over Beck’s mating gland and whimpers at the taste, so tempting. 

“Yes, yes,” Beck keens, plastering himself to Tony. He feels burning hot. 

They tumble onto the bed, Tony huffing out a breath as Beck pins him and ruts against him. Tony feels a wave of possessiveness. Beck was going to let everyone see him like this; was he going to let a different alpha mount him? Tony snarls and rolls them over, pins Beck down by his shoulders. He attacks Beck’s mouth, kissing and biting until they’re panting, until Beck’s lips are swollen red. 

“Mine,” Beck breathes out and wraps his legs around Tony’s hips. Tony gasps as Beck flips them again, dangerously close to the edge of the bed. 

Tony bucks up against Beck’s ass, his heart hammering. Why does it feel like he’s playing with fire? This is going to burn him somehow, whether he bites Beck or not. Beck is a handful of omega, pushy, demanding, nearly feral, but it didn’t feel like this earlier. Beck’s scent has become warm and inviting again, a pleased omega with nothing but getting knotted on his mind. 

Beck reaches back, guides the head of Tony’s cock into him. Tony moans helplessly at the tight heat. Beck is slick for him, making it easy for Beck to sink down onto him, taking his full length. Beck shudders, tips his head back, gasping for breath. 

“Fuck, you’re so good at taking my cock,” Tony says. The words just happen, his brain disconnected from his mouth. 

Beck moans, low and throaty, circling his hips. His eyes are hazy, fully engulfed in his heat, and Tony feels a pull low in his gut, the need to fuck Beck into submission, fill him with come. Tony digs his fingers into Beck’s hips and slams up into him. Beck snarls and catches himself on Tony’s chest. The sudden pressure makes Tony gasp, throws him back to darkness and terror. He grabs Beck’s wrists with a snarl, twisting them off him. 

Beck yelps, yanks his hands back, and Tony blinks back into the bright bedroom, sun streaming in. Beck’s eyes have cleared a little; he holds his arms to his chest, confused, his hips still twisting, rocking. Tony’s heart pounds, but not in the good way, he feels constricted, his chest tight. He scrabbles at his own chest, but there’s nothing but scar tissue.

“Shit, sorry, are you okay?” Tony asks, and he can’t tell if he’s panting from the flashback or the omega still on his dick. He can’t catch his breath. 

“What the hell?” Beck growls. He shakes out his wrists.

This happens sometimes, when Tony is on his back, when there’s sudden pressure on his chest. He and Pepper rarely… he hasn’t tried this particular position in a while. It was fine yesterday, so he didn’t think anything of it. He can’t stay like this; he sits up quickly. Beck is staring at him, chest heaving.

“Hey, hop off for a second, let me readjust,” Tony says, patting Beck’s hip. “If you want to ride me, I just have to be sitting up.” 

Beck doesn’t argue for once, just leans up, allows Tony to slide out of him and scoot up to the head of the bed. Beck watches him warily, scent a little bitter again, like burning bread. Tony’s pretty sure his own scent is filled with fear and anger. Beck crawls up the bed slowly, growls softly, eyes narrowing. 

“We’re good now. I want you, hot stuff,” Tony says, forcing a grin. “Climb on and I’ll give you my knot.” He pats his thigh. He’s still hard, the scent of a slick omega keeping him ready to pop a knot even though part of him is still gripped with panic.

Beck slinks closer, eyes dark and hungry. He looks like a predator stalking his prey, and it’s not helping the vise in Tony’s chest. Beck pauses, hands planted on either side of Tony’s hips. Beck nuzzles the base of his cock, making Tony suck in a breath between his teeth. 

“You don’t smell right,” Beck says, voice low and scratchy. 

“That’s probably because your slick is still on me,” Tony says, breathier than he means to.

Beck drapes himself over Tony’s legs, crouched over his pelvis. “No,” Beck says simply and licks at Tony’s cock. Jesus that’s hot.

He watches Beck mouth at his dick, running his lips up and down the length, but making no attempt to actually suck him off. He licks at the reddened skin at the base where Tony’s knot will swell, making a soft purring noise. 

“Mine,” he murmurs. 

Tony shudders. Maybe he should put a stop to this. Beck biting him should have been sign enough that he’s going too far with this. Omegas get attached during heats, and maybe that’s sexist or old wives tales, but Tony’s seen it happen. One heat and they think they’ve found their perfect mate. It doesn’t help that Tony’s felt a similar pull, already heat claimed him.

“Beck,” Tony says, unsure what to follow up with. He’s already knotted him three times; he couldn’t cut and run even if he wanted to.

Beck looks up at him, and those eyes pin him. Christ, who gave him the right? He’s sunk a little deeper into his haze; anything Tony says wouldn’t make sense. 

Tony wraps one fist around the base of his cock and buries the other one in Beck’s curls. His hair lost its gelled slicked back look two rounds ago, and Tony honestly likes it better this way, soft waves. Beck moans and licks at the head, fucking teasing him. Tony’s breath hitches and he has to work not to jerk up into Beck’s mouth. 

Instead, he guides Beck onto his cock, tugging him down. Beck opens his mouth, allows Tony to feed his cock in. Beck moans around him, and doesn’t need more encouragement to start bobbing his head. It’s perfect, fucking fantastic, hot and wet, with Beck making these soft needy noises like he can’t get enough. Tony groans, rolls his hips into it and Beck just takes him deeper. Beck shuffles his knees closer, until his ass is in the air, presenting. God, Tony could just imagine someone else there to take Beck, knot him while he drools on Tony’s cock. Fuck, that would be hot. Not for the first time, he wishes he could be in two places at once. 

Beck shoves his mouth down, swallows around Tony, forcing Tony’s cock down his throat. It takes a second before he’s gagging and pulling off, spit and precome dripping from his lips. Beck dives back down, sucking harder this time, and Tony moans, thrusts again. Under his fingers he can feel his knot beginning to swell. 

“Hey, I thought you wanted to ride me?” Tony says breathlessly. “Your window’s getting slim.” 

Beck whines, leans back, panting. He looks wrecked, lips red and shiny, eyes watering, and that gorgeous heat flush all down his neck. His mating gland looks like it’s throbbing.

“Fuck, come up here.” Tony tugs and Beck gives, kissing and biting up his chest. Beck licks over the scent point at the base of his throat and Tony feels heat surge through him. Beck sucks on that point and Tony jerks his hips, growls softly. 

It’s like flames are slowly licking up his body, starting at his knot, up into his stomach, his chest. This heat that makes him want to throw Beck on the bed and fuck him hard. Beck growls back, rubs his ass against Tony’s cock. Not good enough, he needs to be inside Beck, needs to knot him, fill him. He slides his fingers into the mess of slick dripping out of Beck, slides in three fingers easily. His mouth goes dry, flames burning hotter inside him. He felt flickers of this earlier in Beck’s heat, but this is five times stronger. 

Beck whines and wiggles his hips. Fuck; Tony pulls his hand out and slicks up his cock with the mixture of come and slick. Beck hadn’t cleaned up at all and it should be disgusting, but it just makes the heat inside Tony ratchet higher, makes him tug Beck down onto his cock with a snarl. Beck keens, shoves his face into the crook of Tony’s neck, his breath damp. 

“Tony,” Beck says his name like a plea. He settles into Tony’s lap, circling his hips, unable to stop himself from moving. 

Tony runs his hands up and down Beck’s back, trailing his fingers over the taut muscles, and back up to his shoulders. 

Beck sits back, watching Tony through heavy lidded eyes while he starts working himself up and down, slowly, his thighs trembling. Tony moves his hands to Beck’s waist, holding on, feeling those muscles work as he rides Tony, moving faster, panting. Tony moans and tips his head back. Beck is a joy to watch. Tony leans forward and licks over one of Beck’s nipples, startling a moan out of him. His hips start moving faster, slamming down onto Tony’s thighs with every thrust. 

Tony scrapes his teeth over one nipple while teasing the other with his fingers, and then switches. Beck makes breathy noises on each thrust, Tony’s knot swelling further, quicker, making each time Beck leans up a little painful and a little perfect. Beck pushes on Tony’s shoulders, pulling away, his chest red, nipples tight; he leans down and kisses Tony hungry and needy, and Tony just gets to sit there and hold on while Beck fucks himself down harder. 

“Oh fuck,” Beck moans, trembling, his cock bouncing against Tony’s stomach. He takes pity on Beck, grips his cock and starts pumping in time with Beck’s thrusts. His mouth drops open and he stares at the ceiling, body working on autopilot. 

“Come for me, come for your alpha,” Tony says, his voice low, almost unrecognizable. Beck slams down on his knot and can’t lean up again, locked onto him. Beck presses his weight down, forcing Tony’s knot deeper, and shudders. He comes silently this time, eyes squeezed shut, slumping forward. Tony’s knot swells more, and he growls, jerking his hips. He’s so fucking close, and Beck’s body is already clamping down tight, but he can’t quite get there. Fuck. Beck circles his hips and whimpers, and when he bites Tony’s shoulder, it’s the final thing that tips Tony over the edge, pulsing, trembling as he comes. He mouths at Beck’s mating gland, the fire inside him burning hotter, so hot he’s sweating. He’s salivating. He wants to bite so badly. He tests the feel of his teeth against that spot. 

“Please, please,” Beck whispers, rocking his hips. He kisses and mouths at Tony’s shoulder, the corresponding spot, but no mating gland raises his skin.

Tony groans against the heated, raised place. He could sink his teeth in and keep Beck as his. Beck is brilliant, difficult yeah, but so is Tony, according to everyone, so maybe they would balance each other out. Beck just fits so well on his knot, and Beck _chose_ him. There’s pride in that; Beck said he rarely spends his heats with alphas, and he’s obviously picky. 

Tony turns his face away, nuzzles into Beck’s neck, cringing at the disappointed whimper. He can’t; bonding is something to be discussed, a decision two people should make together. Or at least they should be dating, it shouldn’t be a sudden heat motivated thing. But God he wants to; he bites and sucks at Beck’s neck, down to his throat, darkening his heat claim. 

Beck relaxes into him, letting him mark anywhere he wants, purring warmly. Tony still feels like he’s on fire. Is this normal? Is he sick, did Beck have some sort of disease, or is heat catching? He digs his fingers into Beck’s ass, pulling him tighter, closer. He bites at Beck’s throat, holding his teeth there while Beck only purrs louder. Tony whines, the warmth making him unable to think. He licks and kisses his way back to Beck’s shoulder. He licks over the bonding gland and some of the fire inside him is banked. 

Tony licks at that spot, fits his mouth there, sucks a mark. He wants nothing more than to sink his teeth in. Beck noses into his neck, perfectly happy to let him. Tony closes his eyes and summons all his self-restraint. He doesn’t use it often, but this is one of those moments, rare though they may be, where he knows he’s in over his head and shouldn’t just barrel forward. 

He keeps sucking on the spot because it soothes something in him, makes that fire die down and disappear, until it doesn’t feel like he’s burning up inside. When he finally leans back against the headboard, Beck’s mating gland is swollen dark, all the blood pulled to the surface. Tony swallows and turns his head to kiss at Beck’s jaw. Beck turns his head enough to kiss back, eyes closed. 

Tony’s knot goes down slowly, until he can slide out of Beck. He makes a face at the slimy feeling of his own come dripping onto him. Beck yawns and just seems to slump off him to the side, rolling onto his back. Tony’s not quite sure what the look Beck gives him means; sleepy and confused, soft though. He’s finally seeing Beck softened and looking like an omega should after a heat, sated. 

Beck curls onto his stomach, pulling a pillow toward him. He’s breathing slow and deep in moments, fast asleep. Tony sniffs at the air; yeah, that was probably the last wave, and now Beck will sleep the rest of the heat off. 

Tony watches Beck sleep for a moment before forcing himself out of bed to clean up. He wipes himself down, unwilling to shower away Beck’s scent so soon. He cleans Beck up as much as he can without waking him. Beck will definitely need to shower before he leaves this time. 

That alpha protectiveness is creeping into Tony’s thoughts. He needs to find something else to do, something else to think about. Omega’s can sleep a full day away after their heat. Tony gets on his tablet to set up some meetings. He can meet with the PR people while Beck is out.

“Friday, keep an eye on him, let me know when he’s waking up, just in case,” Tony says. 

“Will do, boss,” Friday says. He imagines her giving him a cheeky salute.

~*~

Meeting with lawyers and PR people always takes it out of him. Tony feels done-in by the time he can go back to his floor. It’s only been a few hours, but Tony aches. He can’t tell if it’s instinct, if it’s being out of practice dealing with a heat, or some lingering effects of his panic earlier.

Pepper would tell him to take a hot bath.

He can’t think about that right now. 

“Is he awake yet, Fri?” Tony asks, checking his phone. There are texts from Happy, Rhodey, some unknown number, but nothing from Pepper.

“No signs of waking yet,” Friday says.

Tony nods and shoves his phone back in his pocket. “Order chinese for two, actually, make it family size, I don’t know how hungry he’ll be when he wakes up. Have it delivered in three hours.” 

He steps out of the elevator and is hit with Beck’s scent all over again, only a little lighter. Tony didn’t see him rub against anything last night, but maybe he left his scent around before leaving this morning. Tony closes his eyes, exhausted. It’s been a long two days. He didn’t plan on helping an omega through heat this week. 

He drapes his suit jacket over the back of a chair, unbuttoning his shirt as he goes to the bedroom. Tony leans on the door jamb, undoing the cuffs of his shirt. Beck is still sleeping heavily, sprawled over more of the bed than before. His whole room is going to smell like Beck for a while. He planned on going up to the Avengers compound soon anyway; maybe he’ll go up tomorrow and stay. It’s closer to MIT anyway. He can always come back to the city if Beck needs him for the projection run through. 

God, his room smells comforting though. Tony yawns, goes to his closet to change into some sweats and underarmor. He could go to his lab, work on his nano tech; he’s trying to create a suit that’s more portable, that he can keep on him somehow. He should make some coffee first, then head to the lab. 

Tony steps out of his closet and pauses. His eyes catch on the span of Beck’s shoulders, the swell of his ass. Isn’t he cold without a blanket? His alpha brain supplies that usually the omega has an alpha sprawled on them to keep them warm. Tony bites his tongue and rocks on the balls of his feet. He _could_ take a nap. It’s his bed after all. Tony doesn’t like to hover in that uncomfortable place of indecision; he’d rather make a bad decision than none at all. 

Tony drapes a blanket over Beck, running a hand through his hair briefly – to test his temperature, obviously. He’s not too warm, definitely out of heat. Tony settles into bed next to him. It’s surprisingly easy to fall asleep. 

Tony startles awake less than an hour later, pulling himself out of an awful dream. He rolls onto his back, breathing heavily. Space again, floating, trapped, alone… Tony tries to shake it off. There’s a warm presence next to him, and he turns his head. Beck is still asleep. Beck makes a soft, sleepy snuffle and noses closer until his cheek is resting against Tony’s arm. 

Tony sighs, amazed that Beck is still sound asleep. He doesn’t smell like heat; but he still smells good, sweet. Beck presses closer and Tony lifts his arm carefully, laying it along Beck’s shoulders and back, allowing him to press his cheek to Tony’s chest. He’s probably just attracted by Tony’s alpha scent. 

He should just get up, but he’s not going to. This is comfortable, comforting, even if it’s temporary. 

Tony uses his watch to project a screen that he can work on one handed. He engrosses himself in his latest project, making a suit for the spiderling… spider boy, what does he call himself? Spider kid? It’s something fun to focus on, a challenge because he’s not sure what part of the kid’s abilities are tech. He clearly has some sort of enhanced abilities. He doesn’t know when he’ll make contact, doesn’t know if he wants the kid to know it’s him making the suit. 

“That’s not an Iron Man suit… unless you’re planning a rebrand,” Beck says, voice thick and sleepy. Tony swipes the project away. 

“How long have you been awake?” Tony asks, glancing down. 

Beck shrugs. “A while.” He pulls away, sitting up and scrubbing a hand over his face. 

“Friday, you were supposed to give me some notice when he was waking up,” Tony says, with a slight frown. He doesn’t want anyone to know about the Spider kid. He doesn’t think anyone else has found out his real identity. 

“Sorry, boss, it seemed redundant if you were in the room,” Friday says with some attitude. She’s not wrong, but it’s not like he’s the most observant when he’s working. 

Beck looks around, squinting in the dim light. “What time is it?” 

“It’s eight-ish,” Tony says, watching Beck carefully. He doesn’t know what to expect, doesn’t know how Beck is going to react to having been knotted by his boss. 

“Fuck, ten hours? That’s a whole day lost,” Beck groans. He runs both his hands through his hair, smoothing it back. He takes a deep breath. He rolls out of bed and looks around for his clothes, frowning. He walks around the bed. 

“They’re still in the living room,” Tony says. He should have been able to predict that Beck would immediately go into deadline mode. 

Beck rolls his eyes. “I need to…” he freezes, legs tightening. It’s fascinating to watch Beck’s ears turn red, watch the color creep into his cheeks. “I need to shower, actually,” Beck says. 

Tony waves his arm at the en-suite door. Beck disappears through the door; Tony would almost call it fleeing. But it’s not fast enough for Tony to miss the streak of white sliding down the inside of Beck’s thigh. 

Fuck.

Tony can’t get involved further than this, he just can’t. Beck has to know that right? With the whole Pepper thing being… recent. Beck said himself this was just a rebound. Beck is good looking, and he smells great, but there’s no indication they have any deeper connection. This was a favor, helping an omega out. That’s all. 

Or should he say something? He should probably say something, make their positions clear. This was a one-time thing. He should caution Beck against coming in during a heat, maybe make HR send a memo around about heat days and how to use them. 

He definitely needs to say something about the NDA’s. Shit… he needs to have Beck sign one. The lawyers gave him what he thought was an extra, but it’s for Beck, to make sure this doesn’t get leaked from the source either. Tony climbs out of bed, goes to the living room and picks up Beck’s clothes along with the NDA. 

Beck is out of the shower, standing in a towel in the bedroom when Tony returns, looking around curiously. Tony sets his clothes on the bed. 

“You didn’t have them dry cleaned?” Beck says, amused. “I’ve heard the morning after you have breakfast ready, people’s clothes have been cleaned, and there’s a car to take them wherever they want to go.” Beck raises an eyebrow. Tony can’t tell if he’s teasing or challenging him. 

“Yeah, well, I had help then. You’re out of luck,” Tony says with a shrug. 

Beck hums. “Guess I’ll steal something from you,” he says and ducks into the closet. Tony rubs the back of his head, sighs softly. So after all that he’s gonna go down to the lab in Tony’s clothes? Shit, he definitely needs to sign this NDA. 

Beck comes out in a pair of Tony’s slacks - a little too loose everywhere - and a dark blue shirt that makes his eyes even bluer. How does he do that? Beck adjusts the cuffs, rolling them up on his forearms so it’s less obvious they’re a little too short. 

“You can return these when they’re dry cleaned,” Beck says, gesturing toward his own clothes with a smug little smirk. 

Tony rolls his eyes. “I’ll get right on that.” 

Beck’s eyes narrow. “What is that?” he points to the papers next to his clothes. 

“Glad you asked. This is an NDA.” Tony picks up the sheaf of papers with a flourish. “I’m going to need your autograph, you know, to add to my collection.” 

Beck’s expression sours. “Of course, I should have expected… I’m surprised you didn’t have me sign it beforehand. You could have had me sign away whatever you wanted.” 

Tony scoffs. “I wouldn’t have even remembered to get this signed; I don’t care about my reputation. Do you think all those videos have ended up online despite NDA’s? This is because your whole team signed them. Might as well get you to do it.” 

“My whole team…” Beck frowns and then his eyes unfocus, staring into the distance. “Fuck,” he whispers. 

“Yeah, so, the lawyers insist, if we don’t want this out, you should sign one too.” Tony digs through his nightstand and pulls out a pen. He hands it to Beck who takes it in a daze. “What were you even thinking?” Tony asks. It seems so… unplanned. Such a reckless thing for Beck who plans things to the minute. 

Beck shakes his head. “I just- I was thinking about the work. I wasn’t in my right mind.” He grabs the paper; signs and initials in all the right places and throws everything on the bed. “There, all your bases are covered.” Beck doesn’t look at him, stalks out of the room. 

Tony tilts his head, follows Beck. “You know I’m doing this to save your ass, right? Do you know how it would look if this got out? Even though your project is well underway, if people knew, there would always be someone who thought you slept your way to the top.” 

“I know,” Beck says, picking his phone up from the coffee table. He sounds angry, his movements jerky. 

“It’s not a big deal, shit happens,” Tony says with a frown. “I’ve dealt with this before. Stark Industries has your back.” 

“I get it,” Beck snaps. 

Tony falls silent. There’s something going on that he can’t quite figure out. Then again, it could just be that Beck is back to his normal self. Usually the more Tony talks, the more annoyed Beck gets. 

“I have Chinese food on the way if you want to stay for dinner. It’s not breakfast, obviously, but you disappeared when I would have served breakfast,” Tony says. “Friday, what’s the ETA?” 

“Six minutes, sir,” Friday says. 

Beck’s shoulders drop slightly and he tilts his head, studying Tony. “I have a deadline.”

Tony snorts a laugh. “Yeah, of course. Should have known. But you’ll think better with a full stomach. And you’re probably starving after riding me to kingdom come.” 

Beck’s jaw twitches and he presses his lips together - holding back a smile, maybe? 

“I guess I can stay a little while. I’ll be up all night working anyway. My boss got on my ass about working late last night,” Beck says, and behold! He smiles. Tony grins in return. 

“How could he not? It’s a nice ass. It should be worked often,” Tony says.

Beck laughs, a quick short noise, but it’s something. Maybe getting to know Beck better wouldn’t be the worst decision, maybe this doesn’t have to be a one time thing.

“Hey,” Tony leans on the counter. “Have a drink with me?”

Beck rolls his eyes. “I don’t drink on a deadline.”

“After the presentation then? When you don’t have a deadline, have a drink with me,” Tony says. It’s casual, just a celebratory drink.

The heat in Beck’s gaze isn’t casual, isn’t even trying to be. “Yeah, okay. A celebratory drink.”

Tony grins at him, feeling something warm and hopeful in his chest.


End file.
